Trip Of A Lifetime Part II, Vulcan Heat
by V'Kotik
Summary: Trip and T'Pol mind meld with T'Pau and Trip develops a strange interest.
1. My Mind To Your Mind

**Trip Of A Lifetime II - Vulcan Heat**

Authors Note:

_This chapter is largely un-beta'ed, if you feel like taking upon you the task of beta-reading a lot of writing from a non-native speaker, please contact me._

_The first part has been all about drama and the fight our star-crossed lovers had to take to both the Vulcans and Starfleet. From now on, the story will continue in a more lighthearted fashion. There might be funny, hilarious or downright ridiculous moments ahead, so if you're looking for nerve-wrecking space battles or gut wrenching angst, sorry, I suck at writing such stuff and I hate angst, we got way too much contrived angst in the series, nothing of that in here. __ But don't worry V'Lon and his cronies are not defeated yet, so they will have enough challenges ahead._

_The __next two or three chapters will be a bit more geared towards intimacy, while later chapters will put that more in the back burner, once the two star-crossed lovers have found ways to make their different cultures compatible, both above and below the waist line. _

_I'm taking some characters way out of direction, concerning their appearances in the show. If someone doesn't like my ideas, feel free to disregard my ideas as AU. _

_The story picks up immediately after the Events of Part I "I Grieve With Thee". _

**_Update (June 2010): This is a re-upload with minor cosmetic changes, as lately the site seems to have done some creative reformatting..._**

**1. "My Mind To Your Mind"**

T'Pau was a woman of quick thinking. The initial arrangement of two guest quarters for the Commanders Tucker and T'Pol was changed to a shared suite, almost literally, at the wave of a hand. The room, which was used to host visiting dignitaries was richly ornamented, not as drab as most other Vulcan arrangements.

T'Pau had accompanied the couple to their suite, surrounded by 4 heavily armed members of the security force. Since the guards scanned the surroundings for possible safety threats, they did not pay too much attention to the couple, but T'Pau had noticed how their hands had locked together and their glances met each other frequently. As they reached the door and turned to enter, T'Pau instructed the guards.

"Major, a guard of at least four will protect this room at all times. You are not to enter it without the expressed consent of Commander T'Pol and Commander Tucker. No visitors are to be let pass without my order to do so."

"As you wish Minister."

Entering the room after T'Pau, the couple could not stand the separation any longer and they launched at each other, engaging in a passionate kiss. They had completely forgotten about their audience of one. The Vulcan leader did not express any indignation, choosing to observe them with curious interest instead. It seemed to her as if T'Pol had known exactly that the human was in need of this strange way of touching each others lips and wrapping their arms around each other. There was an intense closeness in that contact, which was completely unknown to Vulcans.

Realizing their oversight, the Commanders quickly separated.

"Sorry about that Minister," Trip muttered with a slight blush. "couldn't hold back."

"There is no need to apologize Commander, it is an understandable reaction. You are human. We cannot force you to observe all Vulcan limitations and you held your decorum better than any human that I know during the questioning. You refrained from showing such closeness in a public place. You did well."

"Do I correctly assume that you have instructed the Commander in meditation?" she asked T'Pol.

"Yes. He is a most agreeable student."

"You honored your mate and yourself by your conduct Commander Tucker. I found it difficult to accept that I was witnessing the same man, who had been forced into an emotional breakdown just days before. You presented yourself most honorable."

"Well, thank you. I just didn't want V'Lon to get his way again and I knew that spilling the beans about the bond was the only chance we get," Trip explained. T'Pau looked at T'Pol, waiting for clarification of the strange human way of speaking.

"Humans have a confusing tendency to express many things by... colorful metaphors, frequently involving food terms. 'Spilling the beans' is an earth expression meaning the release of yet undisclosed knowledge." T'Pol clarified.

"A most logical planning; did you plan to claim her as your mate as well?"

"Well I would've preferred popping the ques... Sorry, I mean, I would have preferred to ask her to marry me in better and more romantic circumstances, but when V'Lon started getting fancy ideas about severing the bond, I had to do it to protect us from him. Who knows, what he'll try to separate us."

"So you had included this as a possible course of action in your planning as well." T'Pau stated to make sure she had understood correctly.

"Yes, but that was about the last ace up my sleeve though."

"He had no further realistic options beyond that," T'Pol explained, after another quizzing look from the young Vulcan leader.

"V'Lon did underestimate you Commander Tucker, as did I. You chose well T'Pol of Vulcan."

"Well it's not over yet. V'Lon can still come up with one of his cronies and claim the Kha-li-fee. And then they'll **really **catch me with my pants down."

"He is concerned that V'Lon summons one of his supporters to challenge our marriage and is further concerned that he will not be able to fight for me. Humans possess considerably less physical strength and resilience than Vulcans." T'Pol translated from drawl to Vulcanese again.

"You are already bonded. There can be no challenger. The rite of Kha-li-fee applies only to individuals who are not bonded yet. Challenging a bonded individual would be a capital crime. Your marriage is a mere formality. You will undergo the ritual that is called Kal'i'farr," T'Pau announced. "I shall now leave you. I need to meditate before I meld with you. It is advisable for you to do so as well."

Nodding to both of them, she left the suite. As soon as the doors closed, the two lovebirds launched at each other again. When both had satisfied their pent up need to give their tongues a workout, they changed into a more comfortable set of clothing and prepared for meditation.

X X X

Trip saw a tear run down T'Pol's face, as soon as they appeared in their white space, in which they always met during meditation. In this space, she did not need to hide her emotions, as the meditation was a Vulcan's way of dealing with them in the first place. Here, she could shed tears or smile. It was her smile that fascinated him. It was one of the main reasons for Trip to bear with the long immobility of meditation.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing is wrong. I am most ... honored that you claimed me as your mate."

"You know, I really don't like that phrase. 'claiming someone'," he sighed. "Almost sounds as if I bought you from the Orions."

"I shall remember that in future conversation. What is an appropriate Earth expression?"

"Proposing marriage - there's even a ritual for it. Stand up, I'll show you."

Puzzled, but complying, she stood with her arms clasped behind her back, while he approached her.

"Need one of your hands, darlin'," he whispered.

As she gave him her right hand, he clasped it between his hands and knelt down. Looking up into her eyes with love and passion he asked the question of questions.

"T'Pol, Ashayam, You are the love of my life, the sun that shines in my world. Without you I am incomplete. Will you honor me and become my wife?"

"I wish to become your wife," she nodded with a smile that could light up a galaxy.

Rising up, he embraced her and the two shared a long gentle kiss.

"A most fascinating ritual, it is most agreeable to declare the deep affection for the desired mate. I am grateful that you showed me that custom," she resumed. "Does that ritual not include rings?"

"Been reading up, eh?" he smiled. "Well not considering that it is sort of difficult to buy rings in here. They are not really mandatory. Some people wear engagement rings, but since we're marrying soon anyways, we don't need that. They are mandatory during an Earth wedding, though."

"Can't wait to tell my old folks that they have a daughter-in-law, and such a gorgeous one at that," he beamed with the trademark Tucker smile.

"When I read your mothers messages, I noticed that she often asked you to contact your father. Did you neglect that task?"

"I didn't neglect it, I refused. Ever since I told them that I love you, and at that time we were just back from the expanse, he's been giving me hell about it." Trip frowned.

"He does not condone our relationship?"

"He thinks I'm nuts. He believes that you're a completely emotionless being who wouldn't give me a kiss if your life depended on it. He remembers that, as a kid, I needed a lot of hugging and cuddling. Tried to talk some sense into him for ages, then I just gave up. We'd probably have to make out in the din for him to believe it."

"I do hope that, when he witnesses us exchanging a kiss, he shall realize that he is in error. What does 'making out' mean?"

"Well, that darlin' is a project for another day. You said 'when he witnesses', so does that mean you'll not stop kissing me when we're with my parents?"

"Do you wish so?"

"Hell no, just didn't know how you feel about kissing in public."

"On Earth it is considered acceptable, even more so if we're accompanied by family members only."

"They'll be a bit miffed though, that we didn't invite them to our wedding."

"Since you proposed marriage in Vulcan as well as human tradition, it is logical to assume that we perform both wedding rituals as well. We shall invite them to witness when we conduct the human ritual."

"You would do that? Damn, I love you darlin'" he beamed and kissed her.

"You have always held old traditional customs in high regard, so it was logical to assume that you would know a ritual for our situation and you would wish to perform it. We shall prepare for it as soon as we reach Earth."

He narrowed his eyes, the trademark Tucker sign for deep thought or the imminent arrival of an idea. "Tell you what, I got a better idea. Since there never has been a marriage between a Vulcan and a human before, I doubt that Earth will recognize our marriage just like that. Instead of doing the legal limbo, we'll go into engagement for a year and then on our first anniversary we'll do the Earth wedding. And I believe that a R'Tas is a bit over 260 Earth days, so our bond should be complete by then as well."

"The Vulcan year has a length of 266.4 Earth days, so by the time of the anniversary the bond is completed and if I surmise your intention correctly, you want to go into a period of betrothal and use the Earth ceremony to celebrate the completion of our bond and make our marriage official on Earth as well."

"Impeccable logic as always," he sighed happily.

Suddenly he fell silent and the sudden change from his Tucker smiled joy to narrow-eyed deep thinking startled T'Pol. She still had no idea how that human could change his whole emotional constitution from one general state to another in a matter of seconds.

"You appear to be thinking extensively about something," she stabbed in the dark.

"Yeah, I do. It's sort of strange. Much of the crap I'm getting from my old man is about contact things. I noticed that in the last time we often start holding hands almost automatically. We did it on Enterprise and we even did it today with Minister T'Pau around. And you seem to spend a lot of time giving me the cuddles. Not that I'm complaining, it's just not what you'd expect from a Vulcan, maybe that's why my old man just doesn't get it."

"Trip, Vulcans are touch telepaths. When we touch another individual, we can sense their emotions. When our hands are connected, I can sense your emotional state, even without the bond. I experience a very deep connection to you that way. I also know that this gesture is most reassuring for you. The impulse to hold hands often is mine."

"Now a few things make sense; that's why you guys don't like shaking hands and that's why your mom had riddled me out all of a sudden." he said wide-eyed.

"Meaning?"

"Before the ceremony... with Koss, I was in my room trying to straighten the robe, I was wearing. Your mom dropped by to tell me that things are about to start. She helped me with the robe and while she closed it properly she touched my neck. And all of a sudden she knew that I'm madly in love with you."

"She sensed it," T'Pol croaked as suddenly tears started running down her face.

Trip became worried. Although she expressed her emotions in her meditative mind, all out crying was still a rare event. "What's wrong darlin'?"

"The sensation of guilt, about causing you so much suffering, is still present with me."

"It's ok darlin'," he said, gently cradling her. "It's not like it was fun for you either. I was pretty mad at your mom though for making you go through with that, especially since she knew that she wouldn't get her job back for long anyway. I think she thought that, if you're married into the family of a Minister, you'd be safe. She probably already knew that V'Las would go after the Syrranites."

"I do think so as well. I am very grateful, that your affection did not subside after I caused you to suffer."

"Well, you know, we Tuckers are stubborn as a mule at saddle time. In this case it was a good thing." he said with a smile.

After a while her tears dried up as she took comfort in his loving gentle embrace.

"Darlin', can we take a break? My legs are killing me, even in here by now." he groaned.

"We shall end the meditation," she consented and they warped back to reality.

X X X

"Whew! That was a long one," Trip noticed as they finished their meditation. He looked at the beginning sunset of Vulcans sun.

"Agreed," a voice from behind them consented.

"Minister T'Pau," T'Pol said startled.

"I have watched you for almost an hour. It is most unusual to see a human silent and immobile for such a prolonged period of time. You appear to have a natural talent to meditate," T'Pau praised.

"That is not correct," T'Pol answered. "Trip… Commander Tucker is considered one of the most emotional and most active members of Enterprise's crew. His progress is the result of a very determined effort on his part."

"That honors you Commander Tucker. It is also a sign that you have found ways to bridge the differences between our species. It honors you both and disproves a lot of mutual misconceptions between our two races. May I ask how you reached such a state of understanding?" she asked, turning to T'Pol. "How do you handle your mate's emotions? From what I observed earlier you appear to know exactly, when or how to allow him to touch you."

"We are still adapting Minister. I learned that humans are in need of many emotions and gestures that we consider irrelevant or sometimes even inappropriate. The human need of contact is a very strong one and a very meaningful example. Commander Tucker respects my personal space strictly and is willing to suppress his own need of being in close contact. I have learned to see subtle signals that his body emits, when that need becomes more pronounced. I can then allow him to cross into my personal space to provide the contact that he wishes. I also have experienced, although substantially more rarely, instances, where that need was not his but mine."

"May I ask a question here?" Trip interjected.

"Yes, you may," T'Pau nodded.

"I know how T'Pol analyzes everything an' all. I'm afraid, if we continue this talk, that cute mate of mine will mention some things that humans find troublesome to talk about. Isn't it just easier to fill you in on the paydirt during the mind meld?"

"It would require your permission to do that. You would have to allow me unrestricted access to your mind. That is a very... intimate connection." T'Pau lectured.

"Well you have my permission. I have no secrets from T'Pol and I see no reason to have them from you. You have done a lot for T'Pol and me today and if I can help you understand humans better, opening up my mind for you to rummage around in it, is the least I can do. Unless it is so... uh intimate, that it triggers T'Pol's bond reflexes, I'm game. You can look at anything you like, no closed doors in here." He pointed at his temple.

"Trip, Vulcans define intimacy different than humans. My reflexes will not be triggered. I do however share my mate's wish. You may access my mind without restriction, I will not shield anything from you," T'Pol added, turning to T'Pau.

"I am most honored. I shall begin with you T'Pol."

"Never tried meditating alone, but I'll give it a try meanwhile, to smooth the ride for ya," Trip nodded towards T'Pau.

"We shall initiate the meditation together; you are still inexperienced. I will break my meditation as soon as you are prepared to continue unaided. Please do not follow me, when I leave." T'Pol explained, as they sat down into the meditation position. T'Pau observed them with curious interest again.

Sitting in their customary white space, they looked at each other for a while, before T'Pol leaned in to kiss him.

"Stay here, Ashayam, I will return later," she whispered and turned to leave. After that she disappeared as she ended her short meditation.

"We shall start T'Pol," T'Pau said and positioned her fingers on the correct positions.

"My mind to your mid. My thoughts to your thoughts. Our minds are merging. ... Our minds are one"

"_I sense his presence. You are truly bonded. The bond is still young." _

_T'Pau wandered through T'Pol's mind. Unlike during their last meld, that cured her pa'nar syndrome, T'Pol had not raised any mental barriers and T'Pau could freely roam through T'Pol's consciousness. She could see how her relationship with Trip turned from initial resentment to curious interest and into respect. From there grew a heightened romantic interest into a deep affection. T'Pau witnessed the wild swings of emotions during and after T'Pol's forced marriage to Koss, the searing pain caused by Elizabeth's death and the torture of her mate by V'Lon. _

_Observing the couple dealing with their troubles and their growing affection, she also learned about 'delicious parts' and 'icing on the cake', causing her to gasp at the sheer intimacy of her findings. She could also observe, through T'Pol's eyes, how she picked up an almost unnoticeable roll of his tongue in the cheek, indicating the wish for a kiss. She shared the wash of strange and exceedingly strong emotions that swept over T'Pol when she shared such an intimate touch with her mate. _

"_I will break the meld now."_

Both Vulcans were breathing heavily.

"You experience a high amount of... unusual emotions and sensations. Most of them are immensely strong." T'Pau said slightly panting. "Emotions that I have never experienced before, not even when I melded with Archer. How do you control them?"

"Vulcans do not know these emotions, because they are elicited by human gestures. The touch that humans know as a kiss was entirely unknown to me and it took a considerable time to match Trip's level of skill," T'Pol explained with a pronounced blush. "I learned that the emotions caused by this ritual can be most agreeable. They do not need to be controlled or suppressed; they are not harmful and subside by themselves. There was a need to learn to experience them, because I do not wish to deny my mate the emotions and sensations he needs. Unlike us, humans need to experience certain emotions to reach a state of contentment."

"Very well, we shall join your mate in meditation, if you allow my presence. Do you possess a third candle?"

After retrieving a third meditation candle from her bag, T'Pol lit it and nodded her consent with T'Pau joining in the white space. She handed the candle to her and they sat down. T'Pol put her hand on T'Pau's to establish the touch-telepathic link, that would allow her to join their white space and both drifted into meditation.

Trip was still sitting silently, waiting for his mate to return. He didn't dare to get up or take a walk, afraid of accidentally breaking the meditation.

Suddenly he saw the two petite Vulcans approaching. As the women sat down on each side of him, he taxed them.

"How come that you're in here, Minister? I thought this worked only for me 'n T'Pol because of the bond."

"Vulcans have touch telepathic abilities. T'Pol allows me to share her meditation. If you consider my presence inappropriate I shall leave."

"No, no, stay if you like. Just didn't understand how you pulled that off. Are you two ok?"

"We are well Commander," T'Pau answered and he could have sworn she was smiling a bit.

"Well, you two are sorta green in the face... Wait-a-minute... Your blood's green. That's a Vulcan blush!" he reeled as he broke into a roaring laughter, prompting the greenish complexion on the faces of the two young women to turn even darker.

"Oh boy," he chuckled after the laughter had subsided. "Are ya sure you want to meld with me? I mean, if you blush from T'Pol's memories and thoughts, you'll pass for an Orion girl when you read mine. We humans have a knack for rather colorful images of thought."

"I do not doubt that," T'Pau answered. "I know about the strength of human emotions, but you are far better prepared, than your Captain was. I will also concentrate my access to those questions I wish to find answers for. The strength of human emotions will not allow me a long time for the meld. Since you allowed me to access your entire mind I shall find my answers in the time that is available."

T'Pau nodded consent, when she saw T'Pol's and Trips hands slowly crawling to each other. Seeing the approval they locked their hands in one another.

"I had seen the signal, as well," T'Pau said. "It is most fascinating to experience that."

"Commander Tucker. We shall go now. Wait here for our return, T'Pol."

"My mind to your mid. My thoughts to your thoughts. Our minds are merging. ... Our minds are one"

_Mentally bracing herself for the onslaught of human emotions, T'Pau entered his mind. As with T'Pol, she immediately sensed a second presence, although less pronounced than in T'Pol. Trip wasn't telepathic, so he could not raise any barriers, but only beca__use of his expressed permission T'Pau allowed herself to look at all that was available. She wasn't quite prepared for the wild chaos that was Trips thoughts. Wildly swinging between every known form of emotion, she was fighting to keep her composure. She sensed a rudimentary form of structure in his mind, undoubtedly from the meditation training, that T'Pol had been giving him. He would never even come close to the structure of a Vulcan's mind, but changing his nature wasn't the goal in the first place. She saw how Trip and T'Pol both started to learn to adapt to each others needs. She saw, what a smile was and learned how T'Pol's ability to do so in their meditation space was such a strong part of his willingness to learn. _

_She experienced the emotion of amusement and saw Trips keen sense of humor. T'Pau experienced the power that a human joke had to cause positive emotions and relieve tension. Further she learned of Trips burning desire for his mate, his grim determination to never let harm come to her and the red hot passion he harbored. The wave of passion and pleasure, that washed over T'Pol through the bond every time she snuggled up to him, wearing nothing but her 'giggle brow', did now wash over T'Pau and stunned her in amazement. _

_It wasn't the amount of emotions, which overwhelmed her, it was their immense power. Emotions caused by his mate were hugely powerful. Especially the power of passion was almost frightening. On a side track, she also found the answer to T'Pol's question about the meaning of 'making out' and what sort of demonstration he had in mind. _

"_I will break the meld now."_

Heavily panting for air, barely able to stay upright T'Pau wheezed "We shall meditate".

Even in her meditative mind, T'Pau was so overwhelmed, that her legs barely carried her. Squatting down near T'Pol in a less than dignified manner, it took her almost 5 minutes to compose herself.

"Sorry Minister, I didn't mean to upset ya." Trip said with a blush of embarrassment.

"There is no need to apologize, Trip" she returned. The unfamiliar address caused Trip's eyes to widen and T'Pol's 'surprise brow' reached North Pole.

"Having experienced such an... intimate level of contact, it would be illogical to refer to each other by formal titles in private conversations. I do know that your given name is Charles, but you prefer to be addressed as Trip," she explained.

"So, T'Pau, one thing's for sure, I have never seen anyone's face in **that** shade of green before," Trip teased.

"Agreed," T'Pol added with a hint of amusement.

"Let's hope it goes away, if anyone sees you like that..."

"I will dismiss any incriminating conclusions by… claiming to have researched photo synthesis," T'Pau deadpanned, sending Trip into a fit of laughter.

T'Pol looked confused at her mate's laughter. "I do not understand."

"I strongly suggest you meld with your mate in the future. His mind taught me great a deal about, what the humans call humor. I shall use my findings in the future to ease the tensions in dealing with them."

"Oh dear; T'Pol has cracked one from time to time, but ya really take the cake, T'Pau" Trip managed before reeling into the next fit of laughter.

"Unfortunately I was not able to learn much about his colorful language."

"That would require multiple melds," T'Pol deadpanned.

"I learned that humans also put very much importance in close contact with each other. There was a level of intimacy attached to this that I had never experienced before. Interestingly, close contact with you T'Pol seems to have an almost meditative influence on your mate." T'Pau explained.

"Is that intimacy thing the reason, why you were so shaken by the meld?" Trip asked worriedly

"Yes. I do not wish to inconvenience you, Trip. I will abstain from offering too much detail. The images in your mind of what you refer to as 'icing on the cake', 'delicious parts' or 'making out' are overwhelming for a Vulcan."

Now it was Trip's turn to blush... very deeply.

"I saw your concern. Yes, the concept of what you refer to as 'erotic' is completely unknown to any Vulcan, but T'Pol. And she has only experienced a minuscule part of it. There is nothing comparable to that in our culture. I saw a picture in your mind that you described as eating the main course of a meal and leaving the dessert untouched," T'Pau continued in a clinical voice, despite the highly touchy subject.

Trip's face was about to turn very deep purple, causing T'Pol some concern.

"That is comparable to Vulcan mating practices. They are pragmatic, short and efficient. From what I saw in your mind, that would be most disagreeable for a human. You do not need to fear that you will have to experience that permanently, except during T'Pol's Pon-Farr. I saw in her mind that she is able and willing to adapt in the future. I am sure you will open experiences to her that no other Vulcan is able to access and it will be to her advantage. I must caution you however. The emotions involved are immensely strong, especially in you Trip. The form of affection, humans refer to as love, is overpoweringly strong in you and your emotion, that humans call passion, is the most powerful experience I had in my life. You must be very careful, how much of those unfamiliar emotions and sensations you open to T'Pol."

"Oh dear," he sighed "that's some stuff I didn't even talk about with ma parents. Well, they can't look into my mind, that's explaining a lot."

"Do you regret the mind meld?" T'Pol asked.

"Are ya kidding? I'm glad, that I did it. T'Pau explained a helluva lot that I was pondering for some time. Suffice to say, you guys seem to freak out when you see our ideas about ... uh intimacy, and we freak out when you talk about it. Pretty amazing," he grinned.

"Agreed," T'Pau added. "You are not an ordinary pair. You are walking a path that no one has walked before. Everything for you will be uncharted territory and it will determine the path for future couples of our two species."

"Talk about pressure," Trip sighed with a smile. "So on a different note, what's gonna happen next, with V'Lon and the hearing?"

"I will demand Minister V'Lon's retirement from the High Council. His conduct has become intolerable and due to your provocations, he admitted to his dishonorable plans. That gave me sufficient reason to have him removed from the High Council. I will also order an investigation into his followers. I do not condone acts of xenophobia on Vulcan. As for you, your wedding ceremony will be held the day after tomorrow. Enterprise will be in orbit until then. It is customary, for the male to have his closest friend in attendance, which in your case Trip, would be your Captain. And since T'Pol's family is not alive anymore, I do believe that the crew, you served with for over 4 years, will be pleased to stand in," T'Pau explained, while Trip and T'Pol were practically glowing. "Most unfortunately, they will not be able to return you to earth. You will spend 10 days on Vulcan and the human vessel _Columbia _will take you aboard."

"We could switch over to T'Les' house until then," Trip supplied.

"That would be most agreeable."

"I will summon you to the High Council for the conclusion of your questioning at 1100. We shall break the meditation now," T'Pau concluded.


	2. Little Sister

10. Little Sister

_Authors Note: A big Thank You to Dinah for letting me use Torok. I encourage you to read her stories to learn more about this remarkable Vulcan. _

* * *

"Wow, that's an eventful day if I ever saw one," Trip mused and winced at his sore legs from the long meditation they had just finished.

"I shall leave you now, so your mate can tend to your strained extremities. I remember it involved a semi liquid substance dispensed from a tube," T'Pau supplied with a hint of teasing.

As the two love birds almost subconsciously locked their hands, despite the audience, they looked at each other bemused. Shortly before she reached the door, T'Pau turned around and addressed Trip.

"I am not entirely familiar with the concept of 'damn cute'. You do not however need to concern yourself. I am still too young and I have a long period of time to select a mate who will match the high standards you regard me deserving of. Your well wishes are most honorable. And for your other concern; the term 'giggle brow' is a most accurate description. Rest well," she said and left two very confused bond mates behind.

T'Pau was barely out of the room when clothing went flying. Pleasured grunts from Trip signaled the relief he felt from T'Pol's gentle massage. After days of intense meditation, his legs were on fire, but the loving attention of his wife-to-be eased the strain in no time.

"May I ask for an explanation of T'Pau's parting words," T'Pol inquired while gently massaging his legs.

"Well I had this thought. She's one fine looking woman and still alone, especially with all the pressure of leading a planet and all. She's forced to put up with scumbags like V'Lon and has no one to care for her. Phlox told us she's 32, when he analyzed the DNA on the bomb. That's my age for Chris' sake. There must be a nice Vulcan out there, who can make her happy and take care of her."

"Trip, thirty two is an exceedingly young age on Vulcan. She is in a phase of life that compares to 14 or 15 year old humans."

"Shit! No matter she freaked out at that stuff in my head," Trip gasped wide eyed, slapping his forehead. "You show my thoughts to a 14 year old on earth and you go to jail! Jesus Christ!"

"I do not understand."

"We have a thing called 'age of consent', that means the age at which you might start getting intimate without getting in trouble. If I were to get intimate to a 14 year old, I'd be jailed for child abuse. T'Pau sure doesn't act like a teenager but you just told me she is one. It's weird."

"You do not need to concern yourself. T'Pau will not experience her first Pon-Farr before 30 or 40 years from now, but she would be allowed to consummate a bond if she were bonded. It would be exceedingly unusual to be bonded at such a young age, but you did not violate any laws by showing her your mind. She is young by years, but she is wise beyond them. T'Pau lost her parents as an infant and was raised by the Syrranites in intense study of Surak's teachings."

Trip fell silent. After a long time, during which T'Pol had sensed several unexpected waves of anger and worry through the bond, he asked.

"You mean they've been shoving that stuff down her throat all the time? Aren't Vulcans allowed a childhood? That poor girl was studying Surak's thing all the time, so they could plop her on a throne as soon as she's starting to grow boobs?" he asked.

"I do not understand your question."

"Well, when humans are 14 or 15, they would never be pressed into such a responsibility. We're still growing at that age. Making a child learn all his or her life, without a childhood and making them the damn leader at that age would be a scandal on earth. Now that you tell me that she's a teenager, I somehow feel sorry for that poor girl. I think she missed out on a lot in her life, even as a Vulcan. No mother or father to hug, just some damn priests who indoctrinate you? If the stuff that the Cap'n told me about that Syrran guy is anything to go by, I'm not surprised. That guy was a damn freak! Sure she would've loved a mother or a father, who actually gives a damn about her, rather than that self-appointed priest, prattling on about Surak from dusk till dawn."

Strong waves of anger, compassion and protectiveness bombarded her through the bond and T'Pol was growing concerned whether the mind meld had impacted him in a negative fashion. His worsening drawl was a telltale sign of a high state of agitation, which was completely unexpected. He seemed to be unusually concerned about T'Pau.

"Please calm down, Trip. She has everything she needs. You cannot deduce the needs of a Vulcan from your knowledge about the needs of human. I am convinced she is content with her life."

"How do you people know? I see nobody asking her. Is there anybody, who gives a damn what **she **thinks?" he asked angrily.

Taken aback by his agitation, despite the long meditation, she finished her massage and quietly undressed. Lying down on his on top of him and gently stroking his head, she whispered. "Please calm down, Ashayam."

"I know darlin'. Sorry. I have no idea why it is bugging me so much. First I thought she's my age; ok a bit young for leading the damn planet, but when you told me that she's basically a kid it hit me that she's acting completely out of character. I bet not even Vulcan teens are expected to act like that. It's almost as if something happened during that mind meld. Suddenly she almost feels like a little sister or a kid to me." he sighed confused.

"Do not concern yourself. A mind meld is an unfamiliar experience for a human. You need to rest now to calm your mind."

"Well, with you on top of me like that my mind surely will calm soon, but I'm not sure about the rest of me," he chuckled.

As she continued to stroke his hair gently, they soon fell asleep.

* * *

The now familiar wave of pleasure and excitement called T'Pol back to consciousness the next morning. She had spent the night as an 'extra blanket' on her mates back.

"You know, darlin', for a creature, who hasn't got a clue about erotic, you sure are inventive," he sighed, engulfed in the sweet sensation of his mates naked body covering him.

Knowing what he referred to, she pressed her erect nipples a tad harder into his sensitive skin and required further information. "Explain."

"By now I'm having a hard time to resist my temptation to get a little bit more… uh intimate than we are now. But I made my resolution to wait for our wedding night."

"Why are you planning to wait? Your need is obvious," T'Pol whispered, hiding her own eagerness for him to fail at this particular resistance.

"Yes it is, and if I get out now, it'll be even more obvious... uh visually. But there is an earth custom, to wait until the night after the wedding ceremony, only then a couple ... consummates the bond." he explained.

"I learned that waiting for a specific need to be tended to, can sometimes heighten the sensation of satisfaction for humans," she said, hiding her disappointment about not being introduced to the next level of intimacy immediately. Even her most determined attempts to control herself failed at suppressing the ever growing need of engaging her mate in a more substantial variant of bodily contact.

"Damn right darlin', One thing's sure, I'll probably need a lot of stamina, when we're husband and wife, because I want you pretty badly, but I must wait until then, so please get those delicious boobs o' yours off my back or I'll loose my last bit 'o decorum," he sighed in a mix of pleasure and restraint.

"As you wish, Ashayam; however I will hold you to your promise of ending this wait as soon as we are husband and wife." she said, her disappointment now replaced by an impish anticipation. "I do wish to respect your customs as well, but we shall sleep in a... clothed condition until then. I find it most taxing to... resist," she admitted.

"Me too, best I get a **very **cold shower now," he sighed as he rose with a very visual manifestation of male arousal.

"I appear to have discovered a most delicious part," she whispered giggle brow'ed, once he was out of ear shot.

* * *

"Minister V'Lon has informed me of his resignation from the Vulcan High Command," T'Pau opened the proceedings.

"Will you summon him to face charges for his unseemly conduct," Minister Kuvak asked.

"That shall be the decision of Commander Tucker and Commander T'Pol," she answered, looking at the couple.

"Minister, we understand, that it is hard for some Vulcans to get used to the fact that a Vulcan has bonded with a human. As long as he doesn't interfere any longer with us or the Coalition, we don't think he'll need to be drawn to court. The main danger was his threats to withdraw from the alliance and to separate us and that threat's gone now," Trip announced.

"I share my mate's wishes." T'Pol added.

"We shall respect your wish," T'Pau continued. "I have witnessed your bond. The honorable High Priest Torok will perform the wedding ceremony tomorrow. Have you decided where you wish that ceremony to be conducted?"

"We wish to relocate to my mother's house until _Columbia_ arrives," T'Pol took over. "It is logical to perform the ceremony there. We also wish to welcome you as our guest at the ceremony."

"The Earth expression says 'I would not miss it for the world'," T'Pau quoted from her memories of the mind melds. "The official hearing is concluded, you are free to leave. Three officers from the Earth vessel _Enterprise_ are waiting outside. They will be assisting you. T'Pol, your mother's house is now yours. You shall visit the Bureau of Property to have your family's estate assigned to you while you are on Vulcan. The session is concluded."

With that, T'Pau and her fellow members of the High Council rose and left the hall. When the main entrance opened, Captain Archer, Malcolm Reed and Hoshi Sato came into view. As they left towards their friends, Trip held his hands in a stopping motion in front of his chest, seeing the all too enthusiastic approach of his former Captain.

"Trip?" Archer asked confused.

"Cap'n, bear hugs aren't done here. T'Pau has let us get away with enough slip ups. I don't feel like testing her patience. Let's get our stuff."

"Captain Hernandez called me this morning and told me, she'll give you the ride back to Earth," the Captain informed as the five of them walked towards the shared quarters of Trip and T'Pol.

"And I know one Cap'n, who surely was thrilled to take that call," Trip teased.

"Says the man, who proposed marriage right in front of the High Council," Archer teased back.

"I'm still recovering from that shock," Hoshi giggled.

As they arrived and entered the quarters, Archer mused. "Looks like the Vulcans got the clue before we did and threw you right into the wedding suite."

"Well, after I told them about the bond, T'Pau changed the arrangements immediately. I'm not complaining mind you," Trip chuckled.

"Captain, what will be your next assignment," T'Pol asked in an attempt at human small talk, while gathering their meditation gear.

"Well, we're to leave for a planet called Betazed. They had some unknown ship movements around their planet and we've been asked to help with the investigation. Know anything about them? "

"They are strong telepaths. Their race is very similar in appearance to humans. In fact, if they are clothed, you will not see a visual difference except their black irises."

"'If?" the captain inquired. "T'Pol, you make it sound as if they are running around their planet, naked."

"They do not 'run around'," she answered coolly. "However, the Betazoids perform several rituals in a disrobed condition, most notably, weddings."

"Bloody hell, they're marrying in the nude? How's that for putting on a show for the audience."

"Every witness of a wedding is disrobed, Lt. Reed." T'Pol corrected.

"I hope we don't get invited to one," Hoshi said.

"Well you are getting invited, to ours. And you can keep your knickers on." Trip returned. "The ceremony is tomorrow morning at 1100."

"We sure as hell will be there," Archer exclaimed.

"We are ready to leave," T'Pol announced.


	3. Vulcan Dating Service

**11. Vulcan Dating Service**

"It is agreeable to see you Excellency." T'Pol greeted. She was surprised that High Priest Torok and Minister T'Pau showed up so early. The wedding ceremony was not meant to start before 3 hours from now.

"It is agreeable to see you as well T'Pol of Vulcan," the old and dignified High Priest returned. "We have come to your house in time to speak to you and your mate. There are matters of great importance to discuss."

T'Pau and the High Priest exchanged the Vulcan salute with Trip and the wise Torok was inwardly satisfied about the human's use of Vulcan language, even if he failed to hide his strong human accent.

"You are mastering our language well, young man." Torok praised.

"Thank you Excellency, but we just started my training. I've not progressed much further than the basic greetings and the proper proposal of marriage yet," Trip answered with a smile. "But we're planning to improve my language skills. "

"Minister T'Pau will speak with you, young man. I will confer with your mate." the High Priest instructed and indicated T'Pol to follow into the house.

"Well shouldn't I as well…" Trip started to protest.

"Trip, please obey the High Priests wishes, T'Pau will accompany you." T'Pol reassured him.

* * *

"Where is the logic in calling your mate Trip? I remember that his name is Charles." the High Priest inquired, once he had settled down on a chair.

"It is a human custom to assign a name, that often differs from their given name, to friends or individuals that one shares a close relationship with. In a great number of cases that name is related to appearance, character or other personal circumstances. Trip's name is derived from the fact that he is third in a line of men that are named Charles. Both his father and his father's father share that name. So, derived from the English word Triple, those close to him assigned to him the name Trip. Humans call that custom 'nickname'. It is used as an informal address only."

"A very illogical behavior…" Torok wondered, but without the disdainful undercurrent, that many Vulcans applied to such statements.

"During my time among Humans I have learned, that often their impulsive nature and choices, which appear illogical at first, reveal their logic only after the action has been taken. Their pattern of behavior can be confusingly complex, yet may include a very strict code of honor."

"Explain." Torok inquired.

"My mate adheres to a historic pattern of behavior, which is referred to as 'gentleman manners'. It defines a number of very strict rules and advisories on behavior. It is considered outdated by many humans, but still practiced widely by many in the location, my mate was raised at. This particular code of behavior is highly honorable. For instance it calls for males to open non-automatic doors or carry baggage for females, even if the female possesses greater physical strength. It also has a number of exceedingly strict rules on how to deal with females, which are not one's mate. Although Vulcan standards would regard this pattern of behavior redundant or complex, I find it most agreeable and honorable."

"Respect for a female is most logical, T'Pol. Humans obviously need to show it in outward manifestations. I have heard a great deal about Commander Charles Tucker, he is a most honorable specimen. You have chosen well."

Raising her 'surprise brow' T'Pol continued. "Hearing this from you greatly honors me. Unfortunately many Vulcans do not share that view."

"Prejudice and misconceptions are not exclusive to humans. We have those, who are opposing your union, in a regrettable abundance on Vulcan. The difference is that the humans will overcome these false beliefs faster than Vulcans will. Change has never come easy to our people. There are those, who share V'Las' beliefs. The man is still dangerous. I have advised Minister T'Pau to ensure your safety during your stay. You should consider living on Earth as long as your safety cannot be guaranteed on Vulcan."

"I shall speak with my mate about the matter. Excellency, I wish to ask, if an amendment can be made to the ritual vows."

"Explain."

"By Vulcan tradition I am the property of my mate. The thought of possessing a female or speaking of another person as property is morally unacceptable for humans, especially for those that follow the code of behavior, which I explained earlier. Referring to me as my mate's property will cause him great discomfort. Is it possible to change the vows in a way that such references will not be made?"

"It is logical to make amendments, so that the vows are acceptable in both cultures. Since the majority of witnesses will be human, we will express the vows in their language. Do you foresee other amendments?"

"No, although I am afraid that my mate might take actions, which may be offensive for the Vulcan guests. Most likely he will conclude the proceedings with a kiss – the human equivalent of the Ozh'esta and he will most likely touch me again publicly, when he grabs my hand to assist me in rising after the ceremony. It is one of the gestures toward a female that his code of behavior calls for. I shall inform him to abstain from these gestures."

"I prefer you do not. Your mate has shown great control and a great respect for Vulcan culture during his appearance in the High Council. It is logical that we respect his culture in the same manner. Both Ambassador Soval and Ambassador V'Lar are used to witnessing human behavior."

Suddenly T'Pol closed her eyes and started breathing deeply. Upon Torok's questioning look after she opened her eyes again, she explained. "My mate experiences great discomfort and embarrassment, I am still adapting to the influence of our bond."

"There is another very important matter to discuss," Torok continued after T'Pol had found her composure again. "Minister T'Pau informed me about the mind melds with you and your mate. Is it true that you allowed her to touch your minds without any shielding?"

"That is true. My mate has no telepathic abilities, so he could not shield anything and he expressly allowed the Minister to access his mind without restrictions and I chose the same course of action."

"The Minister is very young, too young, I believe, for what is expected of her. She improvidently might have executed an ancient ritual. Did you notice any changes in your own or your mate's behavior after the mind melds?"

"My mate showed a most unusual, protective behavior towards Minister T'Pau. When I mentioned that she lost her parents and was raised by the Syrranites in a way, which he perceived as inappropriate, he became most agitated and protective. He later explained this experience as similar to the emotions that humans experience with a younger sibling or a child.

"My concern is valid then. It appears, that Minister T'Pau has unconsciously chosen you and your mate as her En'ahr'at. When a Vulcan infant looses both parents, it can find substitute parents, who guide and protect it. This connection is initiated during a mind meld. I shall grant both of you and the Minister an audience in the Sanctuary on Mount Seleya before you leave Vulcan to reverse the ritual's effects."

"I shall not make a decision about that without hearing my mate's and Minister T'Pau's opinion on the subject. I surmise that my mate does not wish such a connection to be reversed. I am not experiencing any changes since the mind meld yet. What effects does the ritual cause?"

"During the mind meld – unless one party is unwilling – personal traits of the En'ahr'at are imprinted in the child's mind. Both of you will start to develop a strong parental affection for her. Since your mate is emotional by nature, this process appears to be greatly accelerated in his case. Depending on your telepathic abilities you might also develop a parental bond. Most likely that will only concern you, T'Pol."

"Humans have similar customs of taking on a child as their own, if a young looses both parents. They call this process adoption. I do not believe that my mate will wish to reverse the effects of the mind meld and I am not considering it myself. We both held Minister T'Pau in high regard, even before the melds."

"Very well, your mate is very wise. He correctly assessed, that T'Pau's upbringing was lacking in many aspects, he will be a most honorable En'ahr'at. Make sure you discuss this matter with him. You shall now assist me with the amendments of the vows."

* * *

"Why are we going away from the house? What's so damn secret that I shouldn't hear it?" Trip was very agitated about the secrecy.

"Please calm down, Trip." T'Pau tried to lessen his agitation. "Both the conversations of T'Pol with the High Priest and ours are of very personal and sensitive nature. It is therefore logical to seek privacy. Do not concern yourself. T'Pol will inform you about all the aspects that concern you, as will you."

"Ok, so what is it you wanna talk about?"

"It concerns our mind melds, more specifically aspects of your relationship with T'Pol."

"Ok." Trip muttered warily.

"I have seen your resolution to wait for the night after the ceremony, before you will allow yourself to consummate the bond."

Trip started blushing immediately. "This talk's gonna paint me purple, isn't it…"

"I regret the discomfort that I am causing you, but you need to know the facts to protect your mate from harm."

"What? What harm? Am I doing something wrong?" Trip's mind switched to tactical alert as soon as the word harm passed T'Pau's lips.

"Not necessarily; as I have explained, Vulcan mating practices are simple and efficient. Human mating practices are more elaborate and elicit exceedingly strong emotions and sensations in a Vulcan. I must urge you to keep the human elements of your mating to those, which T'Pol is already accustomed to. If she is in danger of being overwhelmed by the strong sensations, you must conclude the mating act without delay."

Trip gulped from both from the discomfort of the sheer intimacy of information as well as the fact that simple groping might put his mate in danger. "So how do I know when I'm supposed to… uh conclude?"

"Your mate will fail to suppress the strong emotions and sensations. She will fall into a state of incoherence, where the ability to speak or think coherently is lost. Other senses might be impeded as well. Do not leave her in that state for any period of time, conclude the mating and wait for her to return to coherence afterwards."

"Well, I'll make sure to keep it short and simple, don't worry." Trip nodded, still massively blushing.

"Do not underestimate your mate's need. You both have delayed the consummation of the bond for a long period of time. You will be required to 'keep it short and simple' frequently and in rapid succession."

"I think that's all I need to hear." He groaned. "I know you mean well, T'Pau, but I just can't talk about such things. Did you scan my mind for all the raunchy stuff only?" Trip smirked to fight his growing embarrassment.

"No, I learned about several aspects of your relationship. However, intimacy is where our cultures clash most heavily. It will be a long process for T'Pol and you to find a solution that is satisfactory for both of you."

"I can't believe I'm getting 'the talk' from a kid," Trip shook his head in puzzlement, still blushing in a pronounced shade of purple.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're comparable in age to a 14 year old on earth. That means you would not even be expected or supposed to get intimate yet. Usually a year or two earlier a parent, sits down with their kid and explains all about intimacy. This particular conversation is called 'the talk'. So our conversation would mean the teenager, who's not even old enough to mate is lecturing the parent," he chuckled.

"That is, I believe, the concept that earth calls 'irony'. We shall return. You need to prepare for the ceremony. "

* * *

Trip stood with T'Pol in the atrium and exchanged an Ozh'esta.

"Where's the High Priest?" Trip asked.

"He is in our meditation room to prepare for the ceremony. We have a great deal to discuss, but we should do so tomorrow, when we are alone. I shall now go to prepare. T'Pau will assist me. Ambassador Soval is inside the house. He shall assist you with your wardrobe."

"What's that?" Trip asked and pointed at the PADD, which T'Pol handed him.

"High Priest Torok has agreed to some amendments to the ritual vows. Passages that would inconvenience or discomfort you have been adapted."

A rush of passionate affection washed over though the bond as Trip was moved to tears by his mate's thoughtfulness. "Did I tell you that I love you, darlin'?"

"Not in the last 2 hours and 37 minutes." T'Pol whispered after the two shared a passionate embrace.

* * *

"She alright?" Trip asked as T'Pau returned from T'Pol's room.

"Yes. T'Pol will spend the remaining time in quite contemplation until the ceremony starts. We shall greet your former ship mates." T'Pau said as both noticed the low humming of two arriving shuttle pods.

"Welcome Captain!" Trip opened as he shook the hand of his former commanding officer.

"Good to see you Trip. It has been a while since I saw you in anything but a Vulcan robe," Archer chuckled.

"Well, what do you expect Cap'n? We're on Vulcan and I'm getting married. Would be a tad strange to be running around in a skirt," Trip laughed.

"You should get your mate's approval before you allow yourself to be seen in her clothes, Trip," T'Pau chimed in.

"Nah, don't think she'll like that idea and I don't fit in her stuff anyways." Trip joked back while several human, an andorian and a denobulan jaw hit the deck about the unfolding scene. A Vulcan traded jokes with a human – not just any Vulcan – the Head of the High Council no less.

"Well, if y'all done starin'," Trip announced still chuckling. "The Ceremony will soon begin. The guys stay with me and Ambassador Soval. We'll be in the atrium where I'll be giving myself a workout on that gong. The ladies will keep Ambassador V'Lar Company. T'Pau will assist the High Priest. Once we're done with the rituals we'll launch into a little private party in the house. Knowing the blue guy, he's probably got a nice stash of Ale in those shuttle pods."

"Well, did you expect me to come empty handed?" Shran mock-protested.

The male contingent of Enterprise's officers – Cpt. Archer, Commander Shran, Lt.'s Reed and Rostov, Doctor Phlox and Ensign Travis Mayweather met Soval as they gathered near the gong.

Meanwhile in the house the ladies, among them Lt. Anna Hess, Ensign Hoshi Sato, Corporal Amanda Cole, Crewman Cuttler and Ambassador V'Lar marveled over T'Pol's spectacular wedding gown.

* * *

_How the hell did T'Les hurl this thing around with one hand? _Trip thought as he struggled to slam the heavy log into the gong with any dignity. As he struck the gong a third time, breathing heavily from the exertion in the thin Vulcan atmosphere, he gasped with all other human males the moment T'Pol came into view as she left the house.

She wore a spectacular wedding gown, almost identical to the one she wore almost a year ago, when Koss was kneeling where Trip just knelt down now – after Soval had nudged him out of his awe-induced paralysis. It was made from finest Triaxian Silk in Trip's favorite color, an intensive red.

_Thank god she's not walking down the aisle. I'd have to fight off the other guys with a stick. _Trip though and fought to suppress a smile. His eyes never left her until she knelt in front of him and both joined in an Ozh'esta.

"A bond has formed, between these two mates. So it has been proclaimed and we gather here today to witness its existence." Torok's dark bass filled the entire atrium and the thin air with a great pathos.

"What ye are about to witness comes down from the time of the beginning without change. This is the Vulcan heart. This is the Vulcan soul. This is our way. This is the witnessing."

_For people without emotion you sure have a flair for the dramatic! _Archer remembered these words as he watched the ceremony. It were Trips words, spoken at P'Jem 4 years ago. While the High Priest initiated the witnessing meld with both mates, Archers mind shortly went back to that time. The man who beat him up, his adversary at P'Jem, was now standing beside him as his first officer, witnessing the first wedding of a human to a Vulcan. Not any Vulcan – the very same Vulcan that the High Command had placed on Enterprise as a chaperone was not only a Starfleet officer now, she also married Starfleet's finest engineer and his best friend.

"A bond has been witnessed, between these two present. It is a true and deep one. As it was with our ancestors, it is now and ever more." Torok's declaration yanked Archer back into reality.

"I now pronounce this to be a true and valid marriage between the Human male Charles Tucker the Third, son of Cathryn, son of Charles Junior and Lady T'Pol of Vulcan, daughter of Lady T'Les, daughter of V'Nur."

As T'Pol had predicted, Trip added the 'you may kiss the bride now' part of a human wedding to the proceedings, when Torok motioned them to stand and he offered his hand to help her get up. Inwardly Torok allowed himself a hint of satisfaction at how well Lady T'Pol had predicted the behavior of her human mate.

After all the non-Vulcan guests had taken their time to congratulate the newlyweds, all Vulcans – even High Priest Torok – allowed themselves to take part in the human custom of taking a picture of the wedding guests. High Priest Torok and Minister T'Pau excused themselves afterwards as both had responsibilities in the sanctuary on Mount Seleya and the High Council to attend to. Trip had tried to convince T'Pau to join Soval and V'Lar in attending the human party, but even after flashing the Tucker blues didn't help, he gave up.

* * *

When the sun was setting, the party was in full swing. Both Ambassadors had taken part in the Champagne toasts, but otherwise kept it to Vulcan drinks. As predicted, Shran had brought sufficient supply of Andorian ale and Trip had ordered beer and wine from one of the human shops in the embassy for the less adventurous souls or those who had to work the morning shift. While Ambassador V'Lar had joined the knot of officers around the big table to listen to Kov, Shran and Archer trade stories - from time to time she provided one of her own - Soval stood silently on the side and both Trip and T'Pol joined him now and then.

"So Ambassador, why don't you join the others?" Trip asked.

"As a diplomat I am talking all day, a little silence and solitude is most welcome. I also never tire of observing the emotional indulgence of your species."

Trip motioned the Ambassador to follow him outside. "Sorry to be so blunt about it, Soval, but the only species you've been observing for the last hour was very Vulcan. In fact you've been ogling Ambassador V'Lar so much that even one human picked it up – that'll be me." Trip said with a knowing smile.

Instead of protesting the missing title, Soval shot up the 'oops brow'. "Is it truly that obvious?"

"Don't worry, I don't think the others realized it, they are preoccupied. But with Vulcans, reading your face expression is a bit of a wasted effort, so I've become quite good at reading your eyebrow movements and your eyes are a dead giveaway what's going on up there." Trip explained while tipping his temple. "Am I correct that you're looking at V'Lar not as a fellow diplomat, but more like a potential mate?"

"It would not be something that a Vulcan speaks about lightly, but I have come to know you as a very honorable man. Your assessment is correct."

"Well, Soval; I know you Vulcans don't do it in the cumbersome way we humans do, with all the courtship and stuff, so why don't you just ask her, if she wants to be betrothed or married to you?"

"That would be inappropriate. It is hard to understand for humans, but betrothals are mediated on Vulcan. You never ask a potential mate yourself. You and your wife are different. You bonded without a betrothal."

"Well, would a human mediator do, Soval?" Trip asked with a smile.

"If that mediator was a citizen of Vulcan, because he is bonded to a Vulcan female, he would... do." Soval added and Trip could have sworn that man raised a giggle brow. "Since both V'Lar's parents and mine do not live anymore the mediation will take place between V'Lar and me directly."

"Is there any special protocol to observe?" Trip asked.

"No. All that is necessary, is to learn whether or not she agrees with my proposal."

"Well, tell you what, Soval. Let's get back inside. If my eyesight hasn't been impaired there's been a vacated seat directly next to V'Lar all evening and I'll be damned if that is a coincidence. You might wanna wish to join the story telling after all and the next days I'm gonna try to... mediate you a new mate." Trip grinned.

"Agreed." Soval deadpanned and followed Trip inside.

* * *

A loud round of laughter caught T'Pol's attention. Trip and Shran were obviously the center of attention as all guests except Soval and V'Lar shared a nice kneeslapper. She joined the guests at the table.

"Actually," Shran continued. "There is a joke going around in the Imperial Guard - How do you find Archer, T'Pol and Tucker?"

"Easy," he chuckled while he shot back his glass of Ale. "Take a few ships and seek out the nearest Vulcan fleet. Tucker will appear with _Enterprise _right in the middle between you and the Vulcans. Archer and T'Pol will be on a Planet nearby. Extra credits for knowing that Soval is around, too," he finished as the next round of laughter erupted.

Not even Soval and V'Lar could keep down their giggle brows as they recollected the incidents at Paan Mokar and Regulus during which Trip had positioned _Enterprise _in the line of fire between Vulcan and Andorian fleets.

"Fortunately Mr. Tucker will not need that talent in the future." V'Lar said as all eyes turned to her. "I have just returned from Andoria and our relations are better than ever before. Our governments have agreed to reconstruct the sanctuary at P'Jem and the settlement at Paan Mokar in a joint endeavor."

"That's good to hear, Ambassador." Archer replied.

"Are there any relics, which survived the destruction of the monastery?" T'Pol asked.

"I think most of them survived," Shran supplied. "Before we destructed the monastary, I beamed all moveable objects into _Kumari's _cargo bay. Initially the government planned to keep them as spoils of war, but I've heard that they will be returned at some point."

"That was a most considerate action, Commander." Soval nodded.

"How are ya holdin' up being first officer?" Trip asked.

"Actually it's not bad. Archer was right that it is better to learn your ways of doing things first, but I wouldn't object if they gave me a ship tomorrow." Shran laughed.

"Well, won't be tomorrow," Trip chuckled. "T'Pol and I spoke with Admiral Gardner yesterday and they're thinking about putting me on _Challenger's _construction team. I might get to nail together your ship. They think it'll be about 6 months until the trial runs."

Trip caught a glance on Malcolm and Hoshi holding hands beneath the table and continued with a smile. "Some might be interested to hear, that T'Pol and I are to be questioned about serving aboard a ship while having a relationship of sorts. They're thinking about slackening the restrictions on fraternization, now that missions start to last years."

T'Pol sensed Trip's amusement when he saw Kov, Malcolm and Hoshi trying desperately to hide their rapt interest in this particular piece of news.

* * *

Kov was standing near the window and stared out into the Vulcan night, when a human hand was put on his shoulder.

"Kov, unless I've had a few too many of those," Trip nodded towards his glass of beer. "You've been loosing quite some weight."

"Yes. Starfleet's requirements are more physically demanding than what was expected of me aboard the _Vahklas_. And I believe it improves my outward appearance as well."

"Come on, Kov, spill the beans. Who is it?" Trip smirked.

"What do you mean?"

"I've seen your eyes, when I told about the relaxed fraternization rules. I've become quite good at reading Vulcans, even if they embraced emotions." Trip smiled. "You're up to something, or better someone."

"Lt. Hess," Kov admitted and cast his eyes downward. "But I have no knowledge about the appropriate human customs."

"Well, don't wait for a mediator," Trip chuckled. "Actually you'll need to court her. Go on dates and stuff. Invite her to go to movie night with you or invite her to dinner. And spending some time in the gym helps as well, Anna likes her men well muscled."

"Do you think she would be interested in my courtship?"

"Well, that's something that you must find out yourself, but I've caught her looking at you several times, so I would say there's a good chance."

"I hope I can put your advice to good practice."

"Tell you what. Talk to Hoshi, when you're back on the ship. She's the best romance counselor in town." Trip smiled and left towards his wife with a smile.

"You appear to be most amused, Ashayam." T'Pol whispered as they exchanged another Ozh'esta.

"Well, I seem to have started the first Vulcan dating service," Trip smiled. "I'll explain tomorrow darlin'."

* * *

"I believe you might find this very helpful," Phlox said as he handed Trip a hypospray while the last guests staggered out towards the shuttle pods.

"What's it?" Trip asked with a confused expression.

"It is Tri-Ox. I'm well familiar with the human custom of the wedding night. I've come to know you as a man of honor and tradition. If anyone would observe this custom it would be you. Considering the needs of a bonding Vulcan female, I would advise you to make good use of it. Good night commander." Phlox left, sporting his trademark ear-to-ear smile.

"Thanks Phlox." Trip smiled as the rotund Denobulan left.

"I believe there is one last Earth custom to observe, Ashayam" T'Pol said in a hushed voice and indicated toward their bedroom.

"Will ya hold out until I get my robe off and this stuff into myself?" Trip asked with a greedy smile, waving the hypospray.

"I shall assist you with both," T'Pol answered and grabbed his robe to drag her husband into the bedroom.


	4. Civil Duties

**12. Civil Duties**

_Authors note: This chapter is very heavy on dialog, so please bear with me._

"Ugh," Trip groaned, when he woke up.

"Have I injured you?" T'Pol inquired warily.

"Except for that monster hickey, I'm fine," Trip smiled as he pointed at the bite mark on his shoulder. "Just didn't expect you to be that demanding. I'm pretty sore all over. That'll be one helluva muscle ache."

"The need to consummate the bond is a strong one as long as the bond is not mature. We delayed acting on that need for a long period of time, we shall not wait that long again."

"So, does that mean you won't 'need me' 9 times a night in the future?"

"No, but if you wish..." T'Pol was silenced by a kiss.

"If it was for my wishes, darlin', we'd probably still be at it, but my body can't quite keep up with that and I'm not shooting to be the first Starfleet officer to go west by 'excessive mating'. Helluva way to go, but I'd rather spend a couple of decades with you beforehand."

After another kiss, T'Pol snuggled back up to him. "Would you mind explaining your amusement of last night. You said you started a… dating service?"

"Yeah, well I caught Soval ogling V'Lar all evening. I offered to be his mediator and he accepted to me doin' that as soon as I'm a Vulcan citizen, so my first duty as a honorary Vulcan will be to play matchmaker between the two Ambassadors." Trip laughed.

"The Ambassador has shown a great deal of respect by entrusting you with that duty. I hope you treat this task with the proper seriousness."

"Well, you should know me well enough by now. Of course I'll be serious about it. How Do I become a Vulcan citizen anyways?"

"There is no precedence. We are not only the first married Vulcan/human pair. I am the first Vulcan in documented Vulcan history, who married an alien. The High Council will decide to which degree they are granting you citizenship."

"Well guess we'll learn about that soon enough. So what was the High Priest talking about with you?"

"He was interested in learning more about my experiences with your species and he expressed a great deal of respect for you."

"Now that's something new," Trip wondered wide-eyed. "Except the lil' one... I mean T'Pau and Soval, not too many Vulcans besides you have talked positively about me."

Ignoring Trip's slip for the moment, T'Pol conveyed the security issue. "He also advised me to live on Earth until my safety on Vulcan can be secured. I have spoken to T'Pau briefly. A surveillance ship is in a stationary orbit above this estate and patrols are securing its boundaries."

"That doesn't sound too good. Well I was thinking about livin' on Earth anyways, so I looked up a few estates, while we were on our way here. Guess I'll have to speed up the process a bit. I'll try to contact my mom later. I found a nice place that I could afford with all the money I've stacked up over the 4 years, but I'd rather have her pay a visit to look at it, before making the deal."

"That would be agreeable. I shall visit the Bureau of Property today and have this estate assigned to me. There is one final issue to address. High Priest Torok informed me that during our mind melds T'Pau inadvertently chose us as her En'ahr'at."

"What's that?"

"An En'ahr'at is comparable to the human concept of a step parent or a god parent. The ritual, that T'Pau improvidently performed is best resembled by the human concept of adoption. It is a means of protection for a Vulcan young, who lost both parents."

Trip exhaled a big sigh. "That's good news, I already thought I was going mad."

"What do you mean?" T'Pol could feel the relief wash over through the bond, but the transmission also contained a considerable amount of joy.

"Well, do you remember when I got all angry after the mind melds, when I thought that the Syrranites weren't the best candidates to raise her? I started to feel like I was her dad and I thought I was going crazy. After all you just don't start feeling like the dad of a Vulcan. And I was sort of confused that she started to joke around all of a sudden. Do you think she picked that up from me?"

"Most likely. The High Priest explained that during the ritual meld, personal traits are imprinted on the young's mind. In that way the En'ahr'at shares personal traits with the young, much like a biological parent does. It appears she has received some of your sense of humor."

"Well, I just hope she doesn't start to say 'damn' on every occasion," Trip laughed. "And I'm pretty sure she got your giggle brow. Saw that one for the first time yesterday."

"What is a giggle brow?"

"Except in that white space of ours you never laugh or smile. With your face being so stoic all the time I've got to rely on your eyebrows and eyes to read your emotions and I tend to think that I've gotten pretty good at that. You have a very specific raised eyebrow when you're amused."

"You always were very perceptive," she praised. "High Priest Torok shares your belief, that T'Pau's upbringing was suboptimal. He further offered us an audience on Mount Seleya to reverse the effects of the inadvertent ritual." A strong wave of anger and disappointment smashed her unprepared as she conveyed the information and she quickly added, "I did tell the High Priest however, that you would most likely refuse that offer."

"What about you?" he asked as the bonds transmissions seized.

"Since Vulcans are mostly suppressing their emotions, the effects on me will take longer to become noticeable. The almost instantaneous effect on you is caused by the fact that you are emotional by nature. I do not wish the rituals results to be reversed as well."

"I'm glad you think like that." Trip sighed in relief and kissed her thankfully. "I'd still like to have that audience though. That High Priest looked like a mighty good fellow and I'd really like to meet him."

"I shall ask him, while I am in Shi'Kar. May I ask what T'Pau spoke to you about? I sensed your discomfort, so I surmise it was an intimate topic?" T'Pol asked while Trip idly groped his favorite Vulcan buttocks. She shifted slightly to give him better access.

"Well yeah. She instructed me on... uh mating. I turned purple as always, but it was helpful." he said and suddenly started grinning. "Come to think of it, you Vulcans really do nothing the normal way. The kids adopt themselves new parents and the daughter lectures her dad on mating properly. For a species without a sense of humor you people sure can be hilarious."

"We do have a sense of humor, we just hide it better." T'Pol countered giggle-brow'ed. "May I inquire about your fascination with these particular delicious parts?" she asked and pressed the cheeks in question firmly into his hands.

"Well, they're just nice and soft." he grinned.

"I shall give you additional time to tend to them, but we need to rise now." T'Pol said sheepishly and Trip had to laugh about her ploy to avoid admitting that she liked it.

* * *

Trip sat on the desk in front of the view screen, waiting for the transmission to be established. He hoped that his mother would be taking the call. Another one of his fathers rants about how he could have hitched up with a Vulcan wasn't very high on his wish-list at the moment. After several minutes finally the face of his mother appeared on the screen.

"Trip, finally. Where are you hon, you've been all over the news."

"We're on Vulcan mom. There's been a hearing about the stuff that happened on Earth."

"Are you ok? They said you were about to be put on trial for attacking that Vulcan guy." she said with moist eyes. "And they wouldn't tell us where you are."

"It wasn't a real trial, but they tried to nail T'Pol. We're ok now. Had to call a Vulcan gunshot wedding though, so there's a bit of fait accompli we'll have to present to you."

"You're married?" Cathryn asked wide-eyed.

"That's the outcome of a wedding mom, isn't it"

"Well, congratulations boy. Hope you have thought that through. Your father will not be pleased. He opened up a bit when he saw her picking you up from the floor in that news program, but I'm afraid he needs a lot of time to come around."

"This might hurt mom, but I'm tired of listening to the crap my ol' man is giving me. We just had to bury our child and got abused by Paxton's Vulcan cousin afterward. We both took a lot of crap from the Vulcans and Starfleet. I don't need my own family hurling more brown stuff at us. If you force me to choose between you and T'Pol, trust me, you won't like the result."

"You won't have to choose boy, but please try to understand him. We lost Lizzie and the Vulcans didn't lift a finger and you know how you were as a child. I had to spent hours cuddling you and you always complained about girls being too cold for not hugging and cuddling enough when you started dating. Now how is he supposed to believe a Vulcan can give you that. It is a bit extreme."

"You might wanna remember that T'Pol flipped off her own people to go with us into the Expanse, so even my thickheaded dad should know by now that not all Vulcans are the same. As for the other stuff, that's not anybodies business and that includes you. You haven't even met her yet."

"Well we were hoping you'd drop by when you're back on Earth."

"Not gonna happen anytime soon, mom. I have another idea though. I'm sending you a file. It's the data of an estate in California that I'm planning to buy. I'd like you to have a look at it and check whether it'd be something for T'Pol and me."

"I'd love to do that son. Anything specific that I need to look out for, that T'Pol would need?"

"Well it would be nice if it is hidden somewhat, y'know, that not everybody can see into the backyard or into the house. Vulcan's are pretty protective of their privacy."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Ok, thanks mom. When we settle down, we'll invite you both to visit us for an afternoon or so, maybe the ol' man gets along with T'Pol better when he finally meets her."

"I'm sure he will. Just give him time and I'm dying to meet her myself. Must be quite the lady, if she's gotten you to marry her." Cathryn said with a smile.

"That she is mom. I'll call you back tomorrow about the estate ok?"

"Ok, hon. Be careful, both of you."

"Will do mom, see ya."

* * *

Three hours later a chime and a flashing light on the view screen announced another incoming message. A bit warily Trip opened the connection and was greeted by the faces of his wife and T'Pau.

"Now, if that's not my two favorite Vulcans." Trip smiled. "T'Pol, how did you end up in the High Council? Got lost?"

"No, I invited her," T'Pau answered. "I believe the Earth expression is girl talk."

"I might have given you a tad too much insight, hon." Trip groaned good mannerly.

"I was meaning to ask, if you will accompany us for the mid day meal." T'Pau continued.

"Well, who can pass up lunch with two pretty ladies," Trip teased. "So how do I get there?"

"Major Taran will bring you here in a shuttle craft."

"Ok, I'll squeeze myself into a robe. See you in a bit."

* * *

"Catfish?" Trip asked wide-eyed as he sat down on the table.

"Yes," T'Pau explained. "We acquired at in one of the human shops in Earth's Embassy. The Embassies library contained appropriate instructions to prepare the dish. I forwarded it to our kitchen staff.

"Wow, I'm flattered," Trip admitted with a smile.

The two Vulcans and the human engineer began their meal and ate in silence.

"You will need to attend another meeting in the High Council tomorrow," T'Pau broke the silence. "The final decision has not been made yet, but it is fairly sure, that you will be declared a Vulcan citizen tomorrow. Admiral V'Kar is the only member of the Council, who opposes the idea and as the only opposing voice, he cannot forestall our decision. T'Pol also informed me about your decision regarding the mind melds." T'Pau spoke the last sentence rather warily.

"Yeah, don't worry hon, I'm not angry or anything. In fact I'm happy about it. T'Pol and I have lost two kids already, adopting one for a change is rather nice and trust me, we've been through worse things than accidentally adopting a pretty girl." Trip said, smiling about the greenish blush that crept up to T'Pau's face.

"You lost two children? Was there another child besides Elizabeth?"

T'Pol could sense the sadness and the grief in the bond when Trip explained their encounter with Lorian and the Enterprise from another time line. They had not discussed their son for a long time and only now T'Pol realized, how much Trip was still affected by it.

"Do you know what happened to the other vessel?" T'Pau asked.

"No," Trip sighed sadly. "They were outnumbered badly and they took one helluva beating to protect us. We made it through that corridor, but they never followed. Guess they..." Trip did not finish his sentence, trying his best to not cry in front of T'Pau.

T'Pol watched silently as T'Pau rose and walked around the table to sit right next to Trip. The young Vulcan sensed his sadness and put a hand on his shoulder. "Do not be ashamed of your emotions, Trip. You are human."

"The Vulcan Science Directorate is still reviewing Starfleet's reports regarding time travel," T'Pau continued, when Trip had regained his composure with one of T'Pols breathing techniques. "We are planning to send a science vessel into the region of space that was the Expanse. I shall order them to investigate the fate of the other vessel."

"That would be nice hon. I still owe him a slap in the face." Trip smiled and patted T'Pau's hand that was still on his shoulder.

"I do not understand." T'Pau said slightly confused.

"The last time I saw him, he shot me." Trip said sadly. "I can understand him though. Flying around for over 100 years to wait for one single chance to get the job done. That must have been one helluva pressure he had on his shoulders and I guess he needed a good kick in the ass. But I wasn't there for him, I died too soon in that time line. And now..."

"Do not concern yourself," T'Pol interrupted, now sitting on his other side. "You did all you could."

"You and T'Pol shall decide on a Vulcan name for you," T'Pau instructed – now back in Vulcan leader mode. "If you are granted Vulcan citizenship you will be expected to choose a Vulcan name."

"How about T'Rip?" he laughed.

"That would be a female name," T'Pol interjected.

"Hm, is that why it was so difficult for you to call me Trip?"

"Yes, referring to a male with a female name is... awkward. But I have grown accustomed to it." T'Pol explained.

"Well, I would think that _Mishek_ would be fitting." Trip offered.

"You obviously have made progress in learning our language." T'Pau consented.

"We use our meditation sessions for that. Instead of just sitting around in that white space with nothing to do, T'Pol teaches me Vulcan."

"Very well," T'Pau answered with a pronounced giggle brow. Only that particular human engineer would come up with something to do, even during their time of meditation.

* * *

Trip was relaxing on their bed after a long joint meditation. T'Pol had decided to add an hour or two of solitary meditation. Trip was drawn out of his thoughts, when he heard his wife's footsteps approaching. T'Pol was wearing her blue silk jammies, that he knew from their numerous neuropressure sessions in the expanse.

Wordlessly she pushed down the pants and climbed up to Trip with her lower body half completely exposed. Trip watched the situation dumbstruck. "Now is an appropriate time to tend to the delicious parts." T'Pol announced matter-of-factly.

It took Trip a while to regain his composure and he reeled into a hearty laugh. "So my wife wants a nice bum groping. You need to learn a thing or two about the finer points of a romantic encounter, darlin', especially about the absence of blunt announcements and sudden acts of rapid undressing." he laughed as he reached for his favorite buttocks. Ever the devoted husband, he delivered the desired groping with gentle hands.

* * *

"By unanimous decision of the High Council the human Charles Tucker the Third, son of Cathryn, son of Charles Junior, bonded mate of Lady T'Pol of Vulcan is hereby declared a citizen of Vulcan. He shall officially be addressed by his chosen name Mishek of Vulcan. He is expected to conclude the Rite of Tal'oth within the next 2 years."

Trip noticed that T'Pau looked decisively uneasy when she announced the result of the High Council's debate. The flaring nostrils of his wife could only mean, that the Rite of Tal'oth must be something more elaborate than a ritual washing of hands.

"You two almost burst a vein in there," Trip inquired as he walked along the corridor with T'Pol and T'Pau. "So what's this Tal'oth and why did you two get so upset about it?"

"Admiral V'Kar demanded that you undergo this ritual to prove yourself worthy of Vulcan citizenship. Unfortunately the Ministers V'Ren and V'Cor, followed the Admirals arguments and made their consent to the decision dependent on the passing of the rite."

"Well, if that V'Kar fella is involved, I can only imagine that it is something that could get me killed," Trip answered uneasily.

"The Rite of Tal'oth is a desert survival ritual. You are expected to survive in the Forge for four months with a ritual blade as your only weapon. Your mate shall instruct you in Suus Manah techniques and you shall learn basic human medicine to tend to your wounds. You must also acquire a domesticated Sehlat as a companion." T'Pau explained.

"Nice," Trip sighed. "I'll be roaming the damn desert for almost half a year with only a kitchen knife and a tame saber-toothed bear for a companion? Maybe Vulcan citizenship wasn't so brilliant an idea after all."

"It will be a taxing and dangerous mission, but I have trust in your abilities." T'Pol tried to reassure him, despite her own fears for her mate. "We have more than a year to prepare you for the ordeal."

"Well," Trip sighed. "You ladies go for the meal, I've got a date with Ambassador V'Lar. I'll join you later." With that he changed his path toward the Ambassador's temporary office.

* * *

"Commander Tucker, it is agreeable to see you." V'Lar opened after Trip entered her office.

"Nice to meet you, too, Ambassador."

"What is the purpose of your visit?"

"Uh, I'm not used to this Ambassador, so I'll just get it out," Trip started nervously. "I've come as a mediator. There's someone who's interested in marrying you."

"You came here to mediate a betrothal?" the Ambassador asked, visibly surprised. "The person you speak about, must have a great deal of respect to entrust you with that capacity. May I ask, whom we speak about?"

"You may, Ambassador. I think you already know, that we're talking about Ambassador Soval. But he told me that these things are done by a mediator."

"Very well. I am honored by the Ambassador's proposal and you may inform him, that a betrothal between us is most agreeable."

"I'll take that as a yes," Trip grinned.

"You find this amusing?"

"No, on the contrary," Trip coughed, trying to regain a sense of seriousness. "I'm just surprised that you didn't even have to think about it. I'll best get going to deliver the good news. It was a pleasure talking to you, Ambassador," Trip nodded.

"I'm honored." Ambassador V'lar answered, before Trip left the office.

* * *

"Nice to see you Ambassador," Trip grinned as he strode into Soval's office.

"It is agreeable to see you, Mishek."

"It'll take a while to get used to the new name," Trip answered. "Anyways, you may wanna start preparations for a date with High Priest Torok. Ambassador V'Lar asked me to tell you that she thinks a betrothal between you and her is 'most agreeable'."

"Both the information and your service honor me, Mishek." Soval answered after a prolonged silence.

"Well, Ambassador, glad to be of service. If you'll excuse me, I've got a date for lunch with two lovely ladies. I'll leave you to raisin' an eyebrow or whatever you do, when you're happy," Trip smiled and nodded.

Soval watched the human leave the office, before he allowed the giggle brow to creep towards the hair line.

* * *

"I take it that your mission was a success?" T'Pol asked as Trip sat down on the table between his to favorite Vulcans.

"Yep," Trip answered, still grinning. "Two happy customers for the Vulcan Dating Service."


	5. Surprisingly Vulcan

13. Surprisingly Vulcan

The meal went in silence. This would normally not be noteworthy on Vulcan, it was the rule, not the exception. But this meal was not a normal meal as one of its participants was one of the more communicative specimens of the human race. This fact was not lost on his Vulcan companions.

T'Pol noticed that T'Pau had been observing her recently adopted father intensely for quite a while already.

"Is there something wrong?" she asked more into the direction of T'Pau than her husband.

"I do not know. I noticed that Trip is uncharacteristically silent, even in the light of the good news he brought after his meeting with the Ambassadors."

"Don't worry, hon," Trip smiled, but his voice gave away a sense of exhaustion. "There's just so much stuff that happened lately, both good and bad and a lot of bad memories have been stirred up, too. I'm almost used to be wound up to the max all the time. Now that things are getting quite, I'm feeling tired."

"We shall return home after the meal, so you can rest. The unfamiliar climate certainly enhances the effects of fatigue." T'Pol added.

"I hope we can make the joint meal a daily procedure for the duration of your visit on Vulcan." T'Pau offered.

"Agreed," T'Pol nodded, while Trip smiled and watched his two favorite Vulcans.

"There is more news to share," T'Pau continued. "Since we disbanded the High Command and decided to improve our cooperation with humans, we have been in regular contact with the Earth Embassy. One of the more fascinating concepts that the humans told us about is the visit of well known persons in schools. Is this a human tradition?"

"Yeah. I remember, when I was a kid, we had a visit from Jon's dad – Henry Archer. Boy were we awestruck. I think he was as tired as I'm feeling now after we bombarded him with questions for over an hour," Trip grinned about that memory.

"What is the purpose of such arrangements?" T'Pol asked.

"Well, it gives the kids a new perspective. Before Henry Archer came to our class he was some sort of myth to us. But then he sat there and we saw that he was a normal man, just as our dads at home. He also told us quite a lot about Vulcans. Most of us had never seen one, except Ambassador Pointy on the news."

"Ambassador Pointy?"

"Yeah, that's what we called Soval back then. Don't tell him that," Trip said with an impish grin.

"I believe it would be beneficial to the education of Vulcan children if we were to attempt such arrangements as well. Despite our long alliance with Earth, most Vulcan children have never been in contact with a human."

"Well sounds like good idea to me," Trip nodded.

"Would you conduct such a visit, while you are on Vulcan?" T'Pau inquired.

"Well, hon, you're forgetting about the 'well known person' part of the arrangement," Trip lectured smilingly.

"Vulcan is very well aware of who prevented a war at Paan Mokar and who confronted the Vulcan invasion fleet at Regulus. Charles Tucker III and Jonathan Archer are names, which each Vulcan child knows."

"Wow," Trip answered wide-eyed – momentarily flustered. "Well, I'd be glad to help, but give me a day or two to rest, I'd really like to calm down for a bit."

"Of course. We can speak about an appropriate time once you are rested. Do you wish to visit the science academy tomorrow? Professor Solan has offered to take you on a tour of the Engineering Institute."

Trips eyes lit up like a christmas tree, all traces of fatigue gone for a moment. "Well hon, that's like asking a thirsty man, if he wants a drink."

"Very well," T'Pau nodded and allowed herself a small indulgence in satisfaction about finally succeeding in deciphering one of his colorful metaphors.

* * *

The beep of an incoming transmission drew T'Pol out of her meditation.

Trip hadn't exaggerated, when he told during the meal that he was feeling tired. Once he had laid down, he had been asleep in a matter of seconds. The heat, the thin atmosphere and the turbulent last weeks took their toll.

Cathryn jumped momentarily, when the screen lit up and the serene face of a young Vulcan woman came into view, instead of the one of her son. She mustered her counterpart for a second and noticed something, which she never noticed about Vulcans before. This woman was beautiful. A smile came on her face as she recovered from the initial surprise.

"I'm Cathryn Tucker and you must be Mrs. T'Pol?"

"The correct title would be Lady T'Pol, but I do believe such formalities are not necessary within ones family. It is nice to meet you Cathryn," T'Pol nodded and hoped that she had succeeded in using a more human style of speaking.

"Nice to meet you, too T'Pol. Is Trip not at home?"

"He is resting. The heat and the thinner atmosphere of Vulcan have tired him. Do you wish me to wake him?"

"No, no, let him sleep. I was just calling because Trip asked me to inspect an estate for him and I have only a very short block of subspace time. The house is wonderful. I think you will both like it a lot. Trip told me that Vulcans need their privacy and it is practically secluded. Trip will like the private beach it has."

T'Pol noticed immediately, where Trip got this broad Tucker smile from. Now, the colorful language was obviously not a maternal trait.

"We are both grateful for your help, Cathryn. May I ask about the climate in that region?"

"Honey, it's in California," Cathryn laughed, but then remembered that she spoke with someone who was not born on Earth, let alone in America. "It's some of the best weather you can find here, warm for most of the year. I think Trip chose California for a reason."

"I did not know that the estate was in California. I am familiar with the meteorological pattern of that region from my time in San Francisco. I have already spoken with Trip. Once we have settled on Earth, we would both wish to have you and your mate as our guests."

Both women sat in silence for a moment. T'Pol was still trying to find out, why Trips mother had referred to her as a comestible, while Cathryn needed a while to recover from Charles jr. being referred to as her 'mate'. T'Pol deduced that honey must be one of the human's illogical endearments as it had a sweet taste, one of the stronger and positive sensations for humans. In the same moment, she realized her mistake and remembered the frequent objections of Trip to being called her 'mate'.

"I do apologize," T'Pol broke the silence. "I forgot, that humans do not refer to each other as mates. I of course referred to your husband."

"Don't worry. No offense taken," Cathryn smiled. "I guess it won't be the last time we have a little misunderstanding."

"Are you concerned that your son chose a Vulcan as his wife?"

Cathryn was stunned for a second. _If anything, this woman is direct, _she thought.

"Absolutely not my dear," she recovered from the initial surprise about T'Pol's bluntness. "As long as Trip and you are happy, I don't care about heritage, race or species of his wife. Now his dad..." Cathryn's eyes sank.

"Trip told me about his fathers... reservations. I am sure that they will subside after we had the opportunity to meet in person. I consider myself somewhat skilled in... winning over Tucker men." T'Pol answered with one of Trips colorful phrases that she had recently memorized, hoping it would have the desired effect.

After another moment of stunned silence, caused by hearing her first ever Vulcan joke, Cathryn broke into a hearty laughter. "Oh, he will love you, honey. We must finish. Unfortunately the booked subspace time is over. I hope you to see you in person soon."

"As do I, Cathryn."

"Good bye, T'Pol." Cathryn gave a small wave, still laughing as the transmission ended.

"What's so funny woman?" Charles jr. asked. When he heard his wife laugh – not a very frequent occurrence since Lizzie died - he came in from the garden.

"Just called Vulcan," she said, still giggling.

"Looks like Trip's got his wit back, finally."

"Trip is sleeping, I spoke with T'Pol," Cathryn corrected him as she disappeared into the kitchen.

Charles jr. stared wide-eyed at the kitchen door, shaking his head.

* * *

T'Pol was startled, when Trip suddenly approached her in her white meditation space.

"I did not wish to interrupt your sleep," she apologized, assuming that she had invaded his dreams.

"You didn't. I woke up an hour ago. We're both sitting in the meditation room. Didn't expect it to be that easy," Trip grinned smugly.

"How did you know how to initiate meditation on your own? We have not yet progressed to that point in your training."

"Wait 'till we get back, you'll know," he said ominously and winked at her.

"I am impressed. Did you rest well?"

"Yeah. Were you meditating the whole time?"

"No, your mother called earlier."

"Why didn't you wake me up?"

"It would not help you rest to wake you just an hour after you fell asleep. She informed me that the estate in California is ideal for both of us."

"Great," he smiled. "Guess, I'll make the deal then. How did you two get along?"

"Very well. The time was limited, but it was a … pleasant conversation. Although your mother insists on calling me a comestible."

"A what?"

"She refers to me as honey, which according to the Vulcan database is a semi-liquid..."

Her mock ramblings where interrupted by Trip rolling into another hearty laughter.

_It appears that all Tuckers are most receptive for... jokes. _She thought, smiling.

* * *

As they left their meditative state and came back to the here and now, T'Pol raised a surprised eyebrow. Trip had been right in saying that they were both sitting in the meditation room, but most certainly not in a way she had anticipated.

Trip was sitting behind her with his arms slung around her waist and his head resting on her shoulder.

"How did you get into this position without interrupting my meditation?"

Trip let out a guilty sigh. "It was actually accidental. I sort of missed you and thought even if you might get mad at me for interrupting your meditation, a hug was worth the risk," he explained sheepishly. "When you didn't react, I just closed my eyes and listened to your breathing and suddenly I was in there with you."

"I would not have been... mad at you. You had a need and I didn't see to it due to my being not aware of it, so you did it yourself. Your course of action was logical. It is my duty to tend to your needs as it is your duty to tend to mine."

"That's bullshit," Trip snapped, causing an eyebrow lift for the ripe language. "I've read all that stuff about you bein' my property an' all when Hoshi gave me all that material about Vulcan customs. Better just forget about that. You're my wife, not my slave. Actually I would have expected you to be mad at me, because that was pretty selfish of me weren't it for the lucky coincidence that this way I accidentally found a damn nice way of meditating with you," he lectured as his smile returned after the initial annoyance about her weird sense of duty.

"I understand your disapproval of this specific Vulcan tradition, but even if you don't consider me your property, it is nonetheless important that we tend to each others needs."

"That's true, but you can't react each and every time you think I have a need, nor have I the right to expect you to do so. Look, that 'need' to hug or being close to you is pretty much constant, but you can't spend all day coddling me, that's impossible and generally a stupid idea. And you should know that humans pretty often think about... uh, well, sex. But that does not mean that I want you to repel your clothing every time my currently rather under challenged brain hatches a fancy idea or a wet dream."

"So how do I know which need to tend to immediately and which not?"

"Well it's basically pretty simple. Just make sure that you are content with it. If you think I need to 'mate', but you don't want to, then don't do it. Unlike Vulcans we don't die if we don't get enough bed workouts. Same goes for contact. I like hugging you or being hugged a lot, but if you don't want to, then don't. And if I try to hug you and you don't want to be touched, tell me and I'll stop. I won't die from it."

"So you wish me to tend to your non-essential needs only if it doesn't interfere with my own contentment," T'Pol probed whether she had understood correctly.

"Exactly, and same goes the other way. That's the bread and butter of a relationship with a human – mutual respect and appreciation. I didn't marry you to have someone to cater for my every whim, I married you because I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"I shall endeavor to respect your wish," she said and laid back against him. Both remained in their new found meditation pose, silently enjoying each others closeness.

* * *

"Peace and long life, Mishek"

"Live long and prosper, Solan"

"An unusual, but most fitting choice of name," the sturdy Vulcan engineering professor opened the pleasantries.

"Well, that was part of the decision," Trip replied. "I know, Vulcans don't require it, but I want to thank you for your time to show me your institute."

"Your gratitude honors me. My offer, however, is not entirely unselfish," Solan droned as the two men walked along the endless corridors. "During my frequent contacts with human engineers when I was an adviser at Jupiter Station, your name often came up in conversation. You were frequently referred to as a... 'miracle worker'. It was my wish to meet the man, who earned himself that much respect. My youngest daughter learned about you in school and when she learned that you are currently on Vulcan and I invited you to the institute, she demanded that I give her a detailed report about our encounter."

Trip could sense a hint of amusement from the Vulcan, whom in a matter of mere minutes he had taken a liking to. It wasn't often that a Vulcan spoke to him in unconcealed appreciation.

"When T'Pau told me that all children knew about me, I thought that she was just flattering my ego. Obviously she's right," Trip chuckled and after seeing Solan's riddled expression about his overly familiar reference to the head of the High Council, he quickly added. "Sorry, I didn't explain. It's a long, and honestly private story, but Minister T'Pau allowed me to drop the Minister. She has been helping my wife and me a lot these last days and we became... acquainted."

"I see," Solan relaxed. "We have recently started to intensify our studies of Earth's engine designs," he explained as the two engineers entered a large hall and Trip stopped dead in his tracks.

"I'll be damned," he exclaimed, turning towards Solan with the grin of the centuries. "That looks as if you stole _Enterprise's _engineering departement!"

Solan had to summon a lot of his control to keep the giggle brow from circumnavigating his head as he realized, why Minister T'Pau had told him to make sure that - under all circumstances - he shall make sure the human gets to see this room. He was not repulsed by human emotions, as many other Vulcans, having learned to live with the bombardment of emotions that they radiated, during his time on Jupiter Station. This particular human, however, started a blanket bombing of childlike joy on the Vulcan's sensitive emphatic mind.

Solan watched silently and with what passes on Vulcan for amusement, how the human took in the scene, walking through the room as if he returned to his mate after a long absence. Even for him as a Vulcan, who would never claim to understand humans, despite his experience in dealing with them, the immediate contentment and the outright affection for the throbbing propulsion device in the center of the hall was palpable.

"Solan," Trip recovered from his bout of engine love sickness. "Why in the name of all that's holy are you studying our Warp 5 engines? You guys got Warp 7 racers?"

"This is no ordinary Warp 5 engine, Mishek. It contains many of your modifications. After the discovery of the Kir'Shara and the improvement in relations between Earth and Vulcan, Starfleet shared your engineering reports with us. We thought it was logical to study your... rather ingenious modifications on the original subject, before trying to adapt them to our own designs."

"Damn, I thought the lil' one was trying to flatter me," Trip said with a mighty grin.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Never mind, Solan. So what are you studying at the moment? Maybe I can give you some... you know first hand knowledge."

Solan waved an engineer to come over and the human noticed both the very small statue of the approaching engineer and the very pronounced giggle brow on Solan's features.

_Whats so funny that even a Vulcan starts giggling, _Trip thought before the comedy ambush struck.

"Dr. Short, I wish you to explain..."

Suddenly, the human was gone and ran out of the hall, clutching his mouth.

"Is he unwell?" the vertically challenged engineer asked.

"On the contrary, Dr. **Sort.** Do not concern yourself," Solan answered and wondered inwardly, why Minister T'Pau had predicted such reaction to a simple mispronunciation so well. He went to search out his human guest, who, by Minister T'Pau's prediction, should be near the hall, but out of public view, engaging in a human expression of emotions called 'laughter'.

* * *

"I'm truly sorry, Solan," Trip panted after a long struggle to straighten himself.

"There is no need for an apology," Solan retorted. "Minister T'Pau predicted this reaction, when she instructed me to mispronounce Dr. Sort's name deliberately."

"T'Pau planned this?" Trip asked wide eyed. Stunned in disbelieve, it took him a second to digest the news before a grin took over his face again.

"Yes," the Vulcan answered. "She surmised that during my time on Jupiter Station I became familiar with the human custom of … pranks. I do fail to understand however, how the Minister became aware of such illogical arrangements."

"I've got a pretty good idea," Trip answered with a smile, still shaking his head in disbelief. "We better get back in there, I think I owe someone an apology."

* * *

"I thank you for the tour, Solan," Trip said when the two men were back at the entrance of the Engineering Institute after a long and very interesting tour.

"I am gratified that you found it agreeable," Solan answered. "There is one last question I wish to ask. I read the report about your emergency cold start of the engine after it was compromised by Klingon subroutines. Would you agree to demonstrate this procedure to educate my students about it, before you leave Vulcan."

"I have no problem with that, but I must warn you. It's a rather dangerous maneuver and you could redecorate this place in a very undesired fashion if something goes wrong. Why would you wanna learn that?"

"We are planning to experiment with optimized subroutines and I wish to have a standard emergency routine in case of failure of such subroutines. Unlike in the past, we will however report our findings back to Starfleet, should those experiments be successful."

"Well, I'll need my wife for that, but I think she'll agree. If you're not opposed to the idea, I'd like to visit that hall again a few times in the coming days. I sorta miss my engines," Trip admitted sheepishly.

"Knowing how human engineers grow attached to their work, I am impressed that you could refrain from asking me for such a long time, Mishek. Of course my students would greatly benefit from the presence of the man, who's work they are currently studying."

A happy smile graced Trip's features, when the two men exchanged a final Ta'al.

* * *

Trip strode into T'Pau's office in the High Council where she and T'Pol were awaiting the return of their favorite engineer from his tour of the Engineering Institute. Both noticed his utterly angry face expression, not knowing that he had to summon all his control to maintain that mock scowl instead of the grin that was fighting to take over his face.

With long quick steps he raced towards T'Pau, making it clear that she had something to do with his 'situation'. Leaving her little time to contemplate, if her debut as a prankster had gone wrong, he placed his hand on her shoulders and placed a small peck on her forehead.

"You are something else, hon" he managed, before finally giving in to the hard suppressed laughter, leaving T'Pau dumbstruck and T'Pol very giggle-brow'ed.


	6. Family Matters

**14. Family Matters**

_A/N: I hope the story doesn't drag on too much. I suck badly at writing space battles or angsty stuff, so while there will be such things, they come in small doses. Only two more chapters before the First Couple gets back to space... temporarily._

"There is an incoming message from Starfleet," T'Pol interrupted Trips tinkering with a moody kitchen appliance.

"Coming," he acknowledged and followed her to the Video screen, which showed Admiral Gardners face after they initiated the transmission.

"Admiral."

"Commanders. Don't worry, this is more of a social call. I wanted to check, how you are doing. With no real business to do at the moment, Starfleet would not want you to get bored," the Admiral explained smilingly.

"Well, its a bit of a drought out there, so I'm pretty knackered by 2pm at the latest, but I got to spend all afternoon playin' around with a Warp 5 engine, so life's treating us quite nicely for a change." Trip reported grinning.

"The Vulcans let you see one of their engines?"

"Not theirs, ours. When you gave them the design specs and my reports they started studying the modifications that we made to them over the last 4 years and then they're trying to adapt them to their own Warp 7 screamers. And as Solan put it – it is logical to study them on the original subject."

"They've built a complete Warp 5 engine to our specifications ?"

"Looks like it. Maybe I should ask Solan that they nail a 'built under Earth license on Vulcan' badge to it," Trip laughed.

"Hmm," the Admiral hummed, obviously thinking intensely. "We gave them the plans and the reports. I didn't know they were about to build one on their own. Looks like I just found business to do for you, Commander. Do you think the Vulcans would give us that engine when they're done with the research?"

"Positive. They would be going to scrap it anyway, when they don't need it anymore. But why would you want a Vulcan replica of our engines? Ran outta engineers?" Trip smirked.

"No, but ran out of factories. The construction of the new engine facility at Whitehorse is so far behind schedule that we haven't even **started** to build _Challenger's _engines yet and in 6 maybe 8 weeks, we'll have to halt the construction of the ship until the engine's done. If we had a complete engine, a well tested one at that, complete with Tucker tuning kit, we could avoid any further delays in the _Challenger _project."

"Well, I can ask T'Pau tomorrow. I'm pretty sure they'll give it to us."

"Have you thought about my offer to take over the construction team for _Challenger?_"

"Actually I'd love to do that, but we'll have to test whether it'll work. Can't give you too much details yet, but T'Pol and I cannot be separated for long for - at least the next 10 months - and I don't know whether the distance between Jupiter station and Earth isn't going to be too far. It's a Vulcan neurological thing."

"You know that you have to report anything that might impair your fitness for duty," the Admiral reminded them sternly. "Sure sounds like such a condition."

"We will prepare a detailed report for Starfleet medical and for you," T'Pol answered. "We must however ask you to keep our information under strict confidence as such information is of most private nature and not usually shared with outsiders."

"Sounds scary, but you have my word and the medics have their oath anyways. So a report to them and me is sufficient."

"Have you any plans for my next posting?" T'Pol asked. "Due to our current ... condition, a posting on a starship would be impossible, if Commander Tucker is posted at Jupiter Station."

"Well Commander, we are currently thinking about a posting on the Academy, as a teacher. "

"I see."

"Another question, Admiral," Trip chimed in. "So far I've been too busy with myself to ask, but what's this with us reporting directly to you?"

"Well, Commanders. I think our lousy job of protecting you during that hearing on Earth makes it clear, that not everybody in Starfleet is happy about your relationship. But in contrast to my bad performance there I was able to get the concession that both of you will be assigned to my office. In all honesty, it is meant to keep you out of the headlines. Personally, I'm happy for you two and I have no quarrels with it, but there are other... lets say conservative members of the top brass, who don't want to advertise the marriage between a human and a Vulcan."

"Appreciate the concern, Admiral," Trip answered.

"It is what Maxwell Forrest would have wanted. Ever since her commissioning, he was very protective of Commander T'Pol and her well being in Starfleet was one of his more important concerns. I think it is important that someone picks up his mission."

T'Pol's nod conveyed her unspoken gratitude.

"Well, I'll await your report then. Columbia will pick you up in a week. Until then Commanders, since there's no pressing business right now, use the time to relax."

"Thank you, Admiral."

"Do you think Shran will like the idea, that his new ship's engine was nailed together on Vulcan?" Trip laughingly asked T'Pol after the transmission ended. His wife answered with an amused eyebrow lift.

* * *

"You sure you're ok with that, hon?" Trip asked T'Pau during their next joint meal pointing at his steak. "T'Pol needed quite some time to get used to just seeing me eat meat."

"Although I have been in a diplomatic position for a short time only so far," she answered. "I have seen far less agreeable food arrangements in that time."

"Your cooks must have an eyebrow cramp by now," he smiled.

"To avoid such... unfortunate injury, we were offered assistance by Earth's Embassy. A cook comes here each day to prepare your meal, while our cooks prepare T'Pol's and mine."

"Wow," Trip praised wide-eyed. "You sure pull some strings to keep me entertained."

"I was told your... mood is somewhat disagreeable, if you are not well entertained or kept busy," T'Pau teased. Obviously there had been a rather healthy exchange of information during the last round of girl talk.

"Speaking of it," he said, still shaking his head about T'Pau's surprising social skills. "I'm afraid you'll have to skip the girl talk tomorrow. I'll need T'Pol over at the Academy. Solan asked me to demonstrate that cold start we did after the Klingons messed up my engines."

"I wish to witness that procedure myself," T'Pau nodded. "We shall accompany you on your visit tomorrow. Do you plan to visit the academy today as well?"

"Yes. Before we do that routine, I wanna make sure that there are no modifications that could spring a surprise on us. Only realized yesterday that Solan and his folks built that thing from scratch. Speaking of it, do you think they would give that engine to Starfleet, when the research is done? We've run into a bit of trouble with our new factory on Earth and the project's awfully late already."

"Since the engine is the property of the Engineering Institute you should obtain Professor Solan's permission, but seeing that it is an Earth design it would be illogical to deny that request."

"Great. I'll ask Solan. I'm on my way, girls."

With that he stood up and placed a healthy kiss on his wife's mouth and a small peck on T'Pau's cheek. If her inclined head was anything to go by, he could have sworn she had been waiting for it.

* * *

T'Pau, T'Pol and Trip entered the engineers favorite hall the next day to prepare for the demonstration. Solan had assembled his engineering team in front of the engine and after a polite exchange of nods, addressed his team in English.

"Commander Mishek and Commander T'Pol have agreed to demonstrate an emergency cold start procedure, that was performed on the Earth vessel _Enterprise _after the engine was compromised by Klingon subroutines and a core breach was almost imminent. It is imperative that all orders of both are obeyed immediately to avoid risk of injury. The purpose of this demonstration is to develop a standard emergency procedure for the case of such situation arising from our upcoming experiments with optimized subroutines. Commander Mishek shall now explain the situation at the time and the procedure itself."

Both T'Pol and Trip made a step forward. Both wore standard issue Starfleet blue uniforms. In fact both wore **his **Starfleet uniforms as T'Pol had only her colorful catsuits and she did not need their additional warming properties on her native planet. Since she was smaller and less sturdy than her husband, the uniform would usually have appeared baggy on her, but there were other prominent 'assets' to stretch the otherwise excess material. Trip had insisted on wearing uniform, since the Vulcan robes would not be conductive to rapid movement and – technically – they were still on duty, not on a honeymoon vacation even if that had been implied by Gardner during their last call.

"Ok, you probably read the technical reports. Now Commander T'Pol and myself will explain the situation that led to our decision to use this rather dangerous method," Trip started, careful not to use any slang. This was not the right time for misunderstandings. "_Enterprise _had been boarded by a group of genetically enhanced Klingons. They overwrote the subroutines with their own, which would cause an core breach if the ships velocity fell below Warp 5.0 – the engines theoretical top speed. The ship was traveling at Warp 5.2 at the time. But that speed could not be sustained any much longer. We were forced to purge the malicious subroutines with a cold start in under 2 minutes." Many an eyebrow went north at that statement and Trip waved his wife to continue.

"_Enterprise _and _Columbia _merged their warp fields, so that once the engine would have been shut down, _Columbia _would be able to sustain our speed," T'Pol closed, before explaining the routine itself. "You are required to stay near the walls away from the engine through all of the procedure, lest risk injury. The procedure will cause minor damage to the engine by overloading a number of relays. Those will require substitution afterward. The procedure starts with Commander Tucker climbing atop the engine and causing a cascading overload of relays, which subsequently causes a rapid engine shutdown. The relays will be permanently damaged in the process, but the backup relays will take over until the damaged relays have been exchanged. While I will prime the injectors, a third person is needed to reset the backup relays for restart."

"I shall perform this task," Solan interjected.

"Very well," T'Pol continued. "Meanwhile the Commander shall disconnect the controller boards in order to reset them and purge the subroutines in the process. There will be a fourth person required to take the boards from him and return them to him afterward in the correct sequence," she explained with a look towards Solan.

"T'Kir you shall assist with that assignment," Solan instructed and a tall female positioned herself near the boards installation.

"While the boards are reinstalled, I shall reinitialize the Warp Matrix, while Professor Solan restarts the antimatter stream. The whole process shall take no longer than 2 minutes. To emphasize the urgency of the situation, we use the engine parameters as they were at the time, instead of those, which are currently displayed on the readouts. We may start."

Trip briskly walked over to the terminal and started barking out his commands, observed by a group of very high-brow'ed Vulcan engineers.

"Intermix pressure?"

"Fifteen twenty seven," T'Pol answered calmly

"Field variance?"

"Eighty seven millicochranes."

"That's how an engine reading should not look like," Trip shouted out as an explanation for the watching engineers while racing up the stairs to the top of the engine.

"Procedure starts," he barked while pulling the circuit breaker, starting the intentional overloading cascade that shuts down the engine.

"Everyone get away from the bulkheads! It's going to get a little hot in here! " he shouted, racing down the ladder and started the countdown, engulfed in a pyrotechnic display of relays blowing up.

"Engine shutdown in five, four, three, two, one..."

Suddenly the room fell silent as the engine seized working.

"T'Pol, prime the injectors, Solan, reset the relays!"

Trip raced towards the boards and ripped them out, handing them to T'Kir, who made sure to order them properly. T'Pol was finished priming the injectors and raced to the console to reinitialize the matrix, while T'Kir struggled to hand back the boards quick enough for the human to whip them back into place.

"Full power to containment, fire up the antimatter stream!"

Pushing the last piece into place, Trip restarted the engine, 1 minute and 52 seconds after the start of the demonstration.

"Subroutines have been purged," T'Pol reported, a lot calmer than last time, while an out of breath human engineer became aware of the Vulcan engineers engaging in a very un-Vulcan activity. They were clapping.

"Impressive," Solan admitted as he joined his team in the applause. The answer was another grinning head shake from the still panting human.

* * *

"I could really get used to this," Trip sighed happily and put his arm around T'Pol as soon as they were inside the house.

"I shall be grateful that you chose to marry me instead of... your engines. I have to admit however, you appear to be very content." T'Pol raised an eyebrow.

"Jealous darlin' ?" Trip smirked.

"No, if your engines start to interfere, I know how to shut them down," T'Pol teased back.

"So what are you doing each day, while I go to play over at Solan's?"

"Usually I spend that time with T'Pau. I also had the opportunity to speak to High Priest Torok. He informed me that his offer for an audience on Mt. Seleya is still valid, even if we choose not to revert the rituals effects."

"Sounds great. Aren't you going to get bored with nothing to do until _Columbia_ shows up?"

"No. I appreciate the time for additional meditation to recuperate from the taxing last weeks. Please give me your uniform. I shall clean it, before you meet the children tomorrow."

* * *

"Shran," Archer started, shooting back his glass of Andorian Ale. "So, how's life as Science Officer?"

It was the first time since Trip and T'Pol had left the ship, that Archer wasn't having dinner alone. The two of them were badly missed by most of the crew, but it affected the Captain worse that he allowed himself to admit. Seeing that something was wrong, Shran had invited himself to Captain's dinner.

"Well, you know that it is only on paper," Shrank answered, putting down his glass heavily. "I'm not a scientist, but the job as Tactical Officer is already taken and seriously Lt. Reed is every bit as good as I am in that position. But I must say, this young Ensign, who was recommended by my predecessor does a good job."

"Ensign Rao?"

"Yes, that's her. But enough talk of business. What's it with you? I've still got to learn a lot about humans, but I know **you **long enough to see that something is troubling you."

"You're right about that. It's harder than I thought to get used to the ship being without Trip and T'Pol. Not only have I lost two fantastic officers, but also two friends. I always took it for granted that they're around."

"I know what you mean," Shran commiserated. "I'm not known to be sentimental, but I miss my old crew as well sometimes. That's why I never got too comfortable with fellow crew members until Talas. It's just too much baggage, if you lose a man or they transfer to another ship."

"I'll come around," Archer sighed, while Shran refilled. "Then I better not get too comfortable with you, you'll be jumping ship soon enough," he added with a smirk.

"Well, considering how we met, I'd say we are quite comfortable already."

"True," Archer smirked with a lightening mood. "You gave me quite a beating at P'Jem."

"What would you have done?" Shran asked with his usual exuberance. "All we knew about you pink skins, was that the Vulcans had been babysitting you for the last 100 years. Here we are looking for a Vulcan spy station and suddenly you show up with a Vulcan officer in tow," Shran answered in mock defiance.

"Yeah, we did every mistake the Vulcans had predicted. Stumbled out into space and managed to run into a crisis on every turn. Thank god that clumsy monk managed to miss everything and shot right into that curtain in front of the portal." Archer had to laugh at that memory.

"And you pack quite a punch as he had to learn... and I later," Shran added, flexing his jaw as if he had just taken a left hook.

"That's probably the only thing, I'll never forgive you," Archer said more seriously. "I knew something was foul when you showed up in the expanse unannounced."

"Well, that's probably the one thing I'll always regret. Most of what I told you was true. I volunteered because I had come to trust you, knew you were in trouble and I owed you for your help at Weytahn. I had hoped that I can convince the Imperial Guard not to steal the weapon once I'm out there, but when the Supreme General appeared on the screen with the direct order to get it, my hands were tied. That was the most sickening order I ever obeyed." Shrans face twisted in distaste.

"They ordered you? Well, come to think of it I should have known better. At the time I was convinced you did it to make a name for yourself in the guard."

"There was no need for that, I had a good name already," Shran mock complained and shot back his ale. "In the end it is good that you destroyed it. We wouldn't be allies now and Vulcan would be extinct, had I taken that thing home."

"How did the Imperial Guard react, when they got the news that you're with Starfleet now?"

"Well, some think I'm stupid to reject a promotion to General and going back to First Officer on a human ship, but those who know and understand my motives took it quite positive."

"Man, you really must like it out here," Archer smiled and emptied his glas as well.

"That's not the only reason. You humans are the only species, that has something which is envied by many Andorians. You have a talent to get along with other species. Before you came out here, everybody was fighting with everybody else. You ran out there and 4 years later everyone is in an alliance with you. You're even on friendly terms with the Xindi after they killed 7 million of you. No wonder the Romulans are having sleepless nights. You were the only ones who could have built this coalition and I'm afraid that's why they'll go for your throat first."

"Never would have pegged you for a man of peace, Shran, you seem to be quite a skilled fighter."

"I didn't become a good fighter because I wanted it, but out of necessity. I'm not a pacifist, but I can do without all that mistrust, the hate. Before you became involved, we quarreled with the Vulcans over a useless piece of rock. That's a sort of fighting, I can do without."

"By the looks of things we'll soon have more fighting at hand than we care to wish for."

"News from Starfleet?"

"No, experience. There are only 3 realistic candidates for those unknown ship movements around Betazed. Its either the Klingons, the Romulans or the Suliban."

"Forget the Klingons and the Suliban. Ever since that Temporal Cold War has been resolved, the Suliban have reverted back to their old lifestyle and rarely leave their own space. The Imperial guard has had some contact with the Betazoids for a long time – they're peaceful people and don't have sophisticated warships. Attacking them wouldn't bring much honor to a Klingon. "

"Which leaves us with the Romulans and that doesn't sound like good news," Archer sighed and gulped down his last ale for the evening.

* * *

"Did your visit in the school go well?" T'Pau inquired, when Trip came back just in time for the customary joint meal with his 'family'.

"Very well, teacher Toran wasn't kidding when he said that they would be a tad blunt, but they're surprisingly disciplined. Not a cat's chance in hell that a room full of human kids would've been that quit, even during the break."

"I am sure it was an interesting experience for the children as well," T'Pol added.

"You will be gratified to learn, that the science vessel _T'Plana-Hath_ will start its mission into the space that once was the expanse in two months. I have given order to search for traces of the missing Earth vessel."

"_T'Plana-Hath_, somehow that name sounds familiar," Trip muttered.

"It was the name of another vessel, 100 years ago. It was the vessel that landed on Earth after Zefram Cochranes first warp flight," T'Pol explained.

"Better send a warship or two along, those Kovaalans mean business and they never send only one ship."

"An older D'Kyr class vessel will go with them as an escort and the T'Plana-Hath is currently upgraded with additional weapons. We read all reports of the Xindi mission, father."

A huge grin, that could give Phlox a run for his money, threatened to split his head in half. "Looks like that mind meld o' yours starts to kick in," Trip said.

"Apparently," T'Pau answered slightly confused.

"It seems we've just started a family, Darlin'," he said and earned himself another amuzed brow-lift from his wife.


	7. Tough Therapy

**15. Tough Therapy**

_A/N: After several chapters that were heavy on dialog, there will be more of the same in the beginning, but more action towards the end as our favorite couple leaves Vulcan and heads back to Earth or don't they?_

_Trip and T'Pol 'practice' some Suus-Mannah. In my universe they have been doing so since the time of season 2. If you want to learn about that, please read my season 2 missing scenes on this site or TriS._

_I've decided, not to describe the audience with Torok. The wise old man will play a more elaborate role in coming chapters_

"Did your audience with the High Priest go well?" T'Pau asked while walking with her surrogate father along one of the seemingly endless corridors of the High Council.

"Pretty well, although he almost lost an eyebrow, when he walked in on T'Pol and me meditating," Trip said with a laugh.

"Why is that? It might be unusual for a human to engage in Vulcan meditation, but it should hardly cause any upset."

"Well, let's say that the unique position, we use for meditation, is certainly not part of the Kir'Shara."

"You meditated in a suggestive posture?" T'Pau looked very surprised.

"Not suggestive, but for someone, who considers two crossed pairs of fingers an intimate gesture, seeing me with my arms around my wife must be quite a surprise."

"High Priest Torok is a wise man. He knows that the two of you have to find your own ways. This unusual posture might be unknown to Vulcans, but it is a sign that you are starting to bridge your cultural differences successfully."

"He sure is an impressive fellow. Invited us back again, whenever we're on Vulcan."

"This is a great honor. Many Vulcans have to wait a long period of time to be granted just one audience."

"Yeah, sure is. But don't forget, that us puny Humans go west after only 100 years. We don't have the time to wait," Trip smirked.

"Does that concern you?" T'Pau asked.

"Quite a bit actually. Many humans now get to live 100 years or maybe a couple more, but by then we're weak and almost helpless, definitely not much use as a mate. And T'Pol will still have a good 50 to 60 years left then. And what she told me is not reassuring. If the bond is strong enough she might even die, when I go west for the last warp trial."

"You should not spend your time with such irrelevant concerns. It is more logical to value the days in each others company, rather than fearing those when one partner is gone."

"Easy to say for you," Trip answered.

"Did you visit the Academy again?" T'Pau quickly changed the topic, when she sensed Trip's darkening mood. Since Trip now and then casually touched her, like putting a hand on her shoulder or the small peck on the cheek when they parted ways, she had noticed, in those short touch-telepathic moments of insight into his mind, that there was a growing undercurrent of dark emotions. That was confusing, since he had been rather upbeat the last few days.

"Yep, said my goodbyes to Solan. Great engineer and a great person. I heard you will send him on a trip to Jupiter Station?"

"Yes. In two weeks time the research program will be completed. They will partially disassemble the engine and after transporting it to Jupiter station, Professor Solan and his team will help to install it on the new Earth vessel."

"Well, thanks, hon. Starfleet will be thrilled. Vulcans and humans have come quite a way in just a few months."

"On a political as well as private level," T'Pau added with a sprinkle of teasing in her eyes.

"Just think of it. An Earth ship, with an engine that was built on Vulcan and the Captain will be an Andorian. That'll give them Romulans something to think about."

"Indeed."

"That's the goodbye then...," Trip sighed as they reached the exit.

"Not yet," T'Pau corrected. "Captain Hernandez has arrived in orbit and invited both T'Pol and you as well as me to dinner aboard her vessel before you leave for Earth."

Trip skipped the now customary peck on the cheek, because there was a sole security guard nearby. To his surprise T'Pau ordered the guard away on a random errand and looked at Trip expectantly. With a smile Trip placed the peck on her cheek before turning to board the shuttle for the ride home.

* * *

"Got everything?" Trip asked as he carried two heavy duffel bags toward the waiting shuttle. T'Pol had given up on trying to convince him that she was the better candidate to carry the heavy bags.

"Yes," she answered and ignored his heavy breathing. "I shall lock the house and we can leave."

After hurling the last duffel into the shuttle's cargo compartment, Trip crawled through the hatch and saw T'Pau waiting for them inside.

"Well, how did you get here?"

"It would not be logical to use two shuttle craft to transport just 3 persons. So I requested to be transported on the same craft as you."

"Logical as always," Trip smiled while T'Pol closed the hatch before the shuttle took off.

* * *

"Welcome back on _Columbia_, Commander Tucker." Erika Hernandez was all smiles as she greeted her former short-time Chief Engineer, after having introduced herself and Commander Kelby to the two female guests.

"Nice to be here," Trip replied with a chuckle. "But don't expect me to stay much longer than last time."

Hernandez and Kelby led their 3 guests to the Captain's mess.

Quietly enjoying her meal, Erika noticed that while the two Vulcans and Commander Tucker seemed very familiar and exchanged glances and smiles – in the case of the engineer – there was no interaction between Tucker and Kelby. She didn't know much about the two engineers' history, only that they didn't get along too well.

"If it is not intruding," Erika asked. "I received several Starfleet reports about the last weeks. Why did a Vulcan minister go after you, Commander?"

"He wasn't after me, but us. He wasn't very happy about our relationship. Basically he's sort of Paxton's Vulcan cousin."

"Not the best company," Erika noted sarcastically. "Is he in detention?"

"No," T'Pol explained. "Commander Tucker and I decided not to bring him to court. A public trial would have put our marriage into public scrutiny and V'Lon's followers might have used that to further propagate their false beliefs."

"But isn't that man dangerous?" Erika insisted.

"We have installed extended security measures and the Ministry Of Security is keeping them under observation."

"Them?"

"Yes. We believe that former Administrator V'Las and Admiral V'Kar are associated with V'Lon. They do pose a threat, but we have them under control. They have lost a lot of influence in the High Council, when V'Lon was forced to resign."

"Well, they still have enough influence to make me go through with that ridiculous ritual."

"What ritual?" Kelby asked.

"Well, I've been granted Vulcan citizenship on the condition that I go through the rite of … Tal'oth. Basically I'll have to survive in the desert for 4 months with nothing but a blade and a sehlat, a sort of saber toothed bear. Last time I was in the desert, I came back to the ship half dead and we were only 2 days there. Talk about a cats chance in hell."

The com signal interrupted their conversation. "Bridge to Commander Kelby."

"Kelby here."

"Please report to Engineering."

"On my way."

"Need a hand?" Trip offered.

"That won't be necessary," Kelby returned sharply and left in a hurry.

"Looks like you two don't get along too well," Erika noted.

"We had some trouble in the past," Trip replied vaguely.

"He is a good engineer, but I think he's a bit out of his depths sometimes," Erika sighed. "I had hoped that you might help him a bit while you're on board. I can't imagine that you would stay away from engineering all the way to Earth anyway."

"A logical conclusion," T'Pol deadpanned.

"Well, I can give it a try," Trip laughed. "But I cannot promise anything. He's not very cooperative, when he thinks I'm after his job."

* * *

"Thank you for your visit Minister," Erika opened the good byes.

"I am honored by your hospitality. I wish you a safe journey Captain Hernandez."

"Captain," T'Pol continued in order to distract Erika long enough for Trip to land a peck on T'Pau's cheek without being observed, before she said her parting words and T'Pau disappeared into the airlock.

A loud clunk signaled the departure of the shuttlepod. Trip and T'Pol walked with Erika towards their guest quarter. When they had been informed that they were to transport a married couple, _Columbia_'s quartermaster had quickly produced a double size bed to replace the usual bunk.

While they closed in on their destination, a com message interrupted. "Captain to the bridge. We have a problem."

All three of them ran to the bridge. When they arrived they saw a tumbling shuttlepod on the view screen. "The thrusters are offline, they lost navigational control and inertial dampers. It looks as if all three systems went offline simultaneously." the tactical Officer explained.

"Can we get them with the grapplers?" Trip offered.

"They're too deep in the atmosphere..."

"Ensign Markov! Do you have them?" Erika barked into the com, but received no answer.

"I'm trying... we have atmospheric interference... they're drifting towards the forge..." a teen-ish voice whined back from the com a while later

The answer was cut short by the view of the exploding shuttlepod. The heat of the reentry and it's uncontrolled fall had resulted in loss of structural integrity. Eerie silence befell the bridge.

Trip buried his face in his palms, while T'Pol put a comforting hand on his shoulder – Vulcan protocol did not matter in this moment.

"Transporter room to the bridge," Markov sighed in relief. "We have them."

Trip, who's eyes were already wet with tears, looked up, mouth gaping open and then ran off into the turbo lift.

* * *

Ensign Markov did not believe his eyes. Merely two minutes after the pilot and Minister T'Pau had been beamed aboard, a teary eyed Commander Tucker had darted into the room, making a beeline for Minister T'Pau, wrapping her in what looked like a hefty bear hug.

But instead of protesting the uninvited touch, the Minister actually returned the gesture. Both stood in silence for a long time.

Trip shot a glance at the young Ensign. "I owe you one, kid."

"Actually, not me, but the Vulcans. They insisted that we keep a transporter lock on Minister T'Pau at all times during shuttle transfers," Markov admitted.

Trip released T'Pau from his clutches and shook hands in gratitude with the Ensign behind the transporter console and the pilot, who had watched the scene in equal bewilderment.

"Let's get you to the bridge, hon."

"Agreed."

* * *

"Are you injured?" T'Pol asked when they arrived on the bridge.

"Only some contusions, that father inflicted by his... enthusiastic embrace," T'Pau answered to which T'Pol raised an eyebrow. Erika digested that statement in confusion.

"You're kidding!" Trip said defensively.

"I am." T'Pau delivered dryly.

"Ma'am, there is a Vulcan ship approaching the coordinates of the accident," the helm officer reported. Erika looked at T'Pau.

"It's the T'Planit, a salvage vessel. We will collect all remaining debris and deliver it to your vessel for a thorough investigation. If you permit, I wish to stay aboard for the duration of that investigation. I am under the impression, that this was not an accident." T'Pau explained.

"Cap'n Hernandez. Permission to lead that investigation?" Trip requested formally.

"Granted." Erika nodded, still confused about the fact that the Head of the High Council addressed Commander Tucker as 'father', especially as he had reacted quite emotionally to the news of her rescue.

* * *

Commander Kelby did a double take. Commanders Tucker and T'Pol, both wearing Starfleet blue, engineering division and Minister T'Pau, also wearing Starfleet engineering blue, but without rank insignia, entered engineering.

"Kelby, can we speak for a moment?" Trip asked.

"Sir," Commander Kelby answered coldly and indicated his office.

"Look, Kelby. I know we had our fair share of problems back on _Enterprise,_" Trip opened. "But this is your department and I want you to know, that it will still be yours when I leave the ship. A couple of days from now, I'm gonna take over the construction team for _Challenger._ So you don't need to fear that I'm after your job."

"That's good to know,... Sir." Kelby replied with a bit too much sarcasm.

"You're one fine engineer Kelby, but in terms of experience, you're so green, you need mowing."

"How do you come to this conclusion...,Sir." Kelby barked back.

"Very simple. Been there, done that, even got a friggin' T-shirt. I was around when those engines were built. So I had years of experience, before we even left space dock. But it still took me almost a year, before I had that kitten purring at warp 5 for the first time. All the specs they gave you aren't worth squat. The people who wrote these consider a golf buggy ride an exciting experience. They never tried to outrun a bunch of pissed-off Mazarites who try to blast you to kingdom come."

"I understand," Kelby said a little less hostile.

"I'm not sure you do. What I'm doing here is trying to help you, because a) your Captain asked me to and b) I'd fancy a little long range duel with Kov. He gives Archer 5.2 at the drop of a hat. If you allow me to help you, you'll do the same if not more."

"The Captain has asked you to help me? Looks like she's got the same confidence in me that you have," Kelby barked in a hurt voice.

"Bullshit. If she wouldn't have confidence in you, you'd no longer be Chief Engineer by now. But she also knows that you can't collect the same experience in 4 months that I collected in 4 years. The Captain hopes that if you let me teach you some tricks, you might be up to speed a tad quicker than I was."

"I see," Kelby backed down and extended his hand. "Maybe we can give this a try, Sir."

"Drop the damn Sir," Trip laughed. "I'm Trip."

"I don't have a fancy nickname, I'm just Tony," Kelby answered with a smirk

"Ok, Tony. We got a ton of debris in cargo bay 2. I want to know why that shuttlepod failed the way it did. Lets hope we find the answer soon. Then we'll give that lady a new make-up," Trip said, pointing at the engines.

"You already seem to know your ways with pretty women," Kelby retorted, indicating the two Vulcans outside and laughed for the first time since Tripe had come aboard.

* * *

"It appears you have resolved your differences," T'Pol remarked as the two men came back out of the office.

"Yep, now let's go solving this puzzle," Trip answered and motioned his two ladies to tag along.

"Looks like you'll run out of uniforms soon, Commander." Erika laughed when they arrived at cargo bay 2.

"Well, couldn't let the ladies run around in the debris in ceremonial robes," Trip shrugged.

While they entered, Erika took Trip aside and whispered. "Commander, why does Minister T'Pau call you father?"

"Long story Cap'n and not really meant to be public business."

"Ok..." Erika whispered back and put the issue to rest for the moment.

* * *

"This is crazy," Trip muttered while poking the remains of one of the thrusters.

"Did you find something?" T'Pol asked, while searching the debris for traces of the navigational computer.

"You could say that," Trip said with a very sharp undercurrent in his voice. "That thing is perfectly ok. Looks as if it was shut down mid flight."

"Could the pilot have shut it down deliberately?" T'Pau inquired.

"It is a possibility," T'Pol answered. "We shall find out by interrogating the pilot at a later time."

"I have seen something like this before, on a vessel that crashed in the Forge," T'Pau interrupted and dug a piece of scorched metal from the debris.

"What is it?" Kelby asked, but T'Pau didn't answer. She wordlessly handed Trip the mangled piece of circuitry.

"That looks Vulcan," Trip said wide-eyed, wielding a scanner. "We don't use such alloys. Tony, have you got an electronics expert on your team?"

"Am one myself," Kelby answered and took out a scanner to analyze the device.

"Use gloves," Trip instructed. "Get the doctor to search for DNA traces."

* * *

"Commander," the tall Vulcan opened. "We meet again sooner than expected. Unfortunately the circumstances are fairly disagreeable."

"Solan," Trip whipped around when he heard the familiar baritone. "What brings you here?"

"I heard about the incident and with Minister T'Pau's permission I came to help you with the investigation. Captain Hernandez allowed me to board her vessel."

"Great! Can you help Commander Kelby? We found something in the debris that looks Vulcan. We need to find out what it is and who put it there."

"I shall assist."

* * *

"So, did you find anything?" Erika Hernandez asked when she entered the cargo bay. She was scared witless, when Trip and Kelby turned around. Their faces where pale and dark rings decorated their eyes. "You've been here all night, haven't you?"

"Yep, but we found something," Trip answered in an exhausted voice. "Solan?"

"The foreign device we found is indeed of Vulcan origin," Solan explained. "It is a prototype computer device and was used several years ago on experimental unmanned suborbital surveillance vessels. It appears that it was installed with the intention of interfacing the crafts computer remotely."

"Someone shut the systems down remotely?" Erika asked in disbelief.

"That is our suspicion," the Vulcan continued. "We have not been able to determine where the remote transmissions came from, but since the circuitry is tuned to Vulcan frequency bands, it is logical to assume, that the transmission came from the surface. No Vulcan vessels where in range at the time. The installation of the device has been done aboard this vessel however. The logical conclusion would be that Vulcans on the surface and humans stationed on this ship have conspired to cause this incident."

"Why would anybody do that? And we could as well have used Shuttlepod 2. "

"Which is why we inspected that craft as well," Solan said and picked up an metallic device. "We found an identical device. This proves that it was a planned attack and that the saboteur did not have the time to remove the device. Your chief of security had secured the craft against unauthorized access immediately after the incident. A most thoughtful measure."

"And what better way is there to drive a wedge between Humans and Vulcans, than having the First Minister die aboard one of our ships," Trip added.

"Romulans?" Erika asked.

"Don't think so," Trip added. "I could think of someone who has a similar goal."

"V'Lon?" Solan asked.

"Bingo. T'Pau spoiled his nice plan to have me and T'Pol separated. She not only let us get married, she also made me a Vulcan citizen and booted him out of the High Council. He hasn't struck me as the most logical of fellows. If he decided to get revenge, killing T'Pau and harming human-Vulcan relations in the process, seems like a plan."

"That does leave the question of his human supporters," T'Pau spoke for the first time.

"Well, the doctor will soon have the result of the DNA tests on that device, then we'll know," Trip added and T'Pol became concerned. Ever since finding the second device, the bond had become a constant source of negative emotions and the situation got continously worse. It was clear that her mate was in a very poor emotional condition.

* * *

The cargo bay door opened and two security officers dragged Crewman Aklund, an engineer in Kelby's team, into the bay. "Captain. We have apprehended the Crewman, who installed the devices. His DNA was the only one found on both devices."

Trip lost it. With a couple of quick steps he crossed the distance and grabbed Aklund by the collar, throwing him against the wall. After delivering a crushing blow to the stomach and a nasty punch to the face, he began his own 'interrogation'.

"Who instructed you, shithead? Tell me where that device came from or I'll beat the shit outta you 'till your mom never recognizes your face! Why the hell did you do that?"

Before the security officers could separate them, T'Pol arrived at the scene and grabbed his arm forcefully. "Trip, stop it."

"Yeah, better listen to what your little Vulcan whore tells you," Aklund sneered, wiping the blood from his nose. Trip struggled to free himself from T'Pol's grip.

Finally he yanked his arm out of T'Pol's clutches and stormed out of the cargo bay. T'Pau went after him, while T'Pol directed a death stare at Aklund.

"I take it that you disapprove of our marriage Crewman?" T'Pol asked seemingly calmly, showing no sign of the struggle she was in. The barrage of blind fury that resonated in the bond took a toll on her control.

"Disapprove?" Aklund answered with a mean laugh. "I can think of a few stronger words, bitch. You might have gotten that hypocrite Paxton. Good riddance. But Terra Prime is not dead and we'll not give up. We will defend the purity of the human..." His rant was prematurely ended by a nerve pinch that sent him collapsing into a pile on the ground.

* * *

T'Pol entered their quarters. She had a terrible headache from all the anger and rage that bombarded her as uninvited bond transmissions. Any attempt at shielding them had long failed.

As the door closed behind her, she saw T'Pau desperately trying to calm Trip down by instructing breathing techniques.

"Wrong," T'Pol hissed and grabbed Trip by the arm, yanking him to his feet. "The emotions must be purged."

"What do you mean?" T'Pau asked in confusion.

"I only realized in the cargo bay that he has tried to suppress most of his negative emotions since the incident on Earth. Humans must not do that, it's dangerous to them. I was of the belief that his progress in meditation was the reason for his quick recovery. I was wrong."

"Do I get a say in this," Trip spat angrily.

"No. Follow me," T'Pol answered dryly and left the cabin. T'Pau followed the pair in bewilderment.

"Wear this," she told Trip and threw him the protective gear, once they were in the gym.

T'Pau helped with the straps, still confused about the situation, while T'Pol donned some protective gear herself.

"Your training is interrupted," she coldly dismissed some crewmen practicing Judo on the tatami.

"Defend yourself," T'Pol instructed Trip and attacked him. Trip dodged the attack and while rolling away, swept her off her feet with a leg move. T'Pol rolled down and delivered a crushing blow to his head. That flipped the switch. All the bottled up anger and fury came to the surface.

* * *

The crewmen, who had been thrown off the tatami 10 minutes earlier, couldn't believe their eyes. Commanders T'Pol and Tucker were beating each other up thoroughly in what looked like an mixture of karate, kung-fu and wrestling and they were not playing around. This was full contact. Only the protective gear prevented them from smashing each others head in.

Captain Hernandez stepped through the door, just in time to see one of the security officers flying in her direction. The Lieutenant had misjudged the situation and stepped in to separate the 'brawling' pair, but this ill-judged move had earned him nothing but T'Pol's footprint in the face.

Shocked about the bizarre scene Erika watched how another high kick of Trip mowed down his Vulcan wife, who was quickly back on her feet and buried another almighty kick in his stomach. Commander Tuckers face was reddened and distorted into grimace of blind fury. He surely was not in the mood for a counseling talk.

T'Pau watched the scene with worry. She finally understood, what T'Pol was meaning when she told about suppressed emotions. Even a Vulcan would have had problems to cope with such an amount of negative emotions. It was the first time ever that she saw a human overcome with his emotions and the sight of this was definitely disagreeable.

A jump kick sent Trip flying again and this time he did not get up. "Emotions have been purged." T'Pol reported, breathing heavily. "We should get Commander Tucker to sickbay." The bystanders watched all this in shock. The sight of an angry Vulcan was scary enough, but seeing husband and wife in a full contact martial arts fight, that was rich.

* * *

"Good Lord," Dr. O'Callahan exclaimed. "I've never seen such an amount of adrenalin in a man who was still alive. He could have broken an arm and not even noticed the pain. We'll see how he thinks about that in the morning."

"Is he injured?" T'Pol asked.

"Nothing serious. Some bruises and aberrations. But looking at you, it appears that he was giving as good as he was taking."

"His judgment was impaired as was mine. I am surprised however, that a human can develop such an amount of physical strength. I did not expect him to be such a fierce fighter."

"As I said, he has a dangerously high level of adrenalin. I don't believe he was even thinking straight at the time. Do you have any idea, what caused this fit of rage?"

"I do Doctor, but I can only tell you that in private and under the safeguard of patient-doctor confidentiality."

Erika Hernandez took her clue and left T'Pol alone with the Doctor.

"Commander Tucker once explained to me that it is detrimental to a human's health to suppress the expression of emotions."

"It can lead to depression," Dr. O'Callahan explained.

"As you know, Commander Tucker and I are married. We also share a Vulcan mating bond, a psychic connection that enables us to share each others feelings and emotions. Since I was struggling with my own emotions at the time, I believe that the Commander suppressed his own anger to avoid adding to my problems."

"So you made him angry in order to release the bottled up emotions?" the Dr. asked.

"That was not necessary. The crewman, who sabotaged the shuttles broke down his control, I merely provided an outlet to channel his fury, else he could have proven a risk to his own health and the health of others. Unfortunately, I was unable to block his emotions from transmitting through the bond, which led to a lack of control on my part as well."

"I can believe that. Aklund had a broken nose and a broken cheekbone when he was brought here."

"And that was the result of a single punch," T'Pol added.

"That must be the most brutal anti-depressive, I've ever seen. I hope it worked."

"We shall be able to test that in the morning."

* * *

Trip woke up with the mother of all head aches. As he came to his senses he noticed that his whole body was sore. Each and every muscle was on fire. "Doc," he groaned.

"Good morning, Commander," the Doctor greeted and administered a hypospray. "You're not feeling all that fresh, I suppose?"

"I feel like having been run over by a truck."

"Well, more specifically you have been run over by a Vulcan female. Do you remember the events of yesterday?"

"Not really, I stormed out of the cargo bay and T'Pau caught me. After that, no idea."

"I leave it to your wife to provide the details," the Doctor said, when he saw T'Pol enter.

Trip shot up on his biobed when he saw the greenish bruises on T'Pol's face. "Holy shit, darlin'..."

"You obviously did not have the chance to look into a mirror, yet." she replied

"What happened? Did we... I mean, did we fight?"

"Yes. I hit you and you finally released the negative emotions that you have been suppressing all the time."

"By beating up my wife?" Trip asked in shock.

"You did not torment me. I initiated a fight in the gym and it got out of hand... slightly."

"What were we doing in the gym?"

"I took you there to initiate the fight. The protective gear prevented worse consequences."

"You could have just nerve pinched me instead of letting me beat you up," Trip answered in a broken voice. He was obviously ashamed of mistreating his beloved.

"Yo do not understand. I wanted you to lose control. It was I who delivered the first punch, not you. I hope you will forgive me, but it was the only way to release all the suppressed anger without endangering others. You were close to being completely overwhelmed."

"You hit **me?**"

"Yes, we were practicing Suus-Mannah and I hit you with a stronger force than usual. That made you loose the remaining control and express all the anger and fury you have been suppressing. Our training proceeded on a more serious level than usual. It became a real struggle as you developed an unexpected physical strength."

"Well, I'll be paying for that the next days. My whole body's on fire."

"It is understandable. You overexerted yourself considerably."

Trip took her hand. "I've been an idiot, darlin'. It's ok that you'll hit me on the head when I'm doing stupid things. But please promise to do it before it becomes so bad that we kick each others head in."

"It was my fault as well. I was in the wrong belief that your calm state was the result of your progress in meditation, I should have noticed earlier that this was a wrong assumption. I believe that we both shall learn from that."

"We will, darlin'," Trip said and kissed her.


	8. Goodbye Soval

**16. Good bye, Soval**

_A/N: After a rocky start Columbia is finally on its way to Earth. Our heroes have to deal with the consequences of their Bruce Lee demonstration and Trip enjoys a long range duel as well as continuous message exchange with Kov. When they reach Earth, a subspace transmission has consequences for Vulcans Embassy._

_Tried my hand at technobabble for the first time. Hope it makes sense. _

"How are you?" T'Pau asked and sat down next to the bio bed.

"Well, I'm healing. Feeling like an ass… feeling bad about beating T'Pol though. I would never harm a woman, let alone my wife."

"Do not concern yourself. She willingly started the fight. She wanted to be the target, since she knew she could defend herself. None of the humans would have escaped without serious injury. I remember that you that you were concerned after the hearing with V'Lon, that he would bring one of his followers to challenge your marriage. After what I have seen yesterday, it would have been a bad idea on behalf of said challenger."

"She was right though. I was swallowing all that anger down. She had enough problems herself and I wanted to help her. See what it's gotten us," he sighed.

"Do not concern yourself. It was a mistake on T'Pol's and your behalf, but you will learn from it. As the bond grows stronger, you will also learn to sense T'Pol's condition. That will make it easier for you to know how to deal with your emotions. Do not try to become Vulcan. Retain your human culture. I know that you pay a lot of attention to enable T'Pol to retain her Vulcan ways. Do the same for yourself," T'Pau warned. She sounded 40 years older than she was.

"You're back in spiritual leader mode, hon," Trip teased. "I'll make sure to follow your advice, I promise."

"I have to return to the surface," T'Pau said. "Your ship leaves in two hours."

"Be careful, hon. Whoever bastardized that shuttle is still down there."

"I have doubled the security forces in the High Council. Do not concern yourself. Have a safe journey."

"Good bye, hon."

Just as Trip wanted to sit up for the customary peck, she pushed him back gently and delivered the chaste kiss, to **his** cheek this time, herself and left to board the shuttle that took her to the surface.

"Bridge to sickbay, Commander Tucker – the Minister has arrived safely on the surface," the com sounded 30 minutes later. By now most people on the ship knew that there was some mystery connection between the Vulcan minister and the human engineer.

With a sigh of relief, Trip sank back on his biobed after Erika's announcement.

* * *

On the first afternoon out of sickbay Trip and T'Pol sat before the view screen in their quarters, waiting for the transmission of Admiral Gardner that the bridge was currently transferring.

"Admiral," they greeted in unison.

"Commanders," their superior answered with a not too pleased expression on his face. "You two look like you've been part of a Klingon mating ritual. A Terra Primer with a smashed in face, a Lieutenant with Commander T'Pol's footprint on his head and two senior officers who beat the raw crap out of each other. All that on your first day back on a Starfleet vessel. Care to tell me what the hell all this is about? At the moment I'm having trouble to find a single reason not to court martial both of you. And don't give me that Vulcan privacy stuff Commander T'Pol. This channel is secure and if you want to be welcomed by someone else but Starfleet Security when you set foot on Earth, you better be talking. Same goes for you Commander Tucker."

"We understand Admiral," Trip answered. "Did you read our reports that we sent last week?"

"About that bond thing, yeah. I understand that you are in each others heads, sort of. But if it has such consequences, it's unacceptable."

"Well first of all, unacceptable or not, there's not much anyone is going to do about it," Trip said firmly. "But I'll try to explain in detail. It is a telepathic link. Since I'm not telepathic by nature, I'm the weak link in the chain. I can sense T'Pol when she's nearby. For instance I know that it's she before she enters our quarters. But that's all I can manage with my limited abilities. That understandable so far?"

"Yes, go on."

"For her it's a bit different. She can actually sense my emotions if they're strong enough, and you can probably understand that my emotions weren't exactly of the desirable variety when our kid died and we got abused less than 24 hours later, they actually transmit to her mind. Problem is, if my emotions transmit through the bond, T'Pol must control them together with her own. And she was in bad condition herself back then."

"Your point, Commander," Gardner urged.

"Coming to it. Not knowing her internal state I decided to just swallow down all anger and fury in order to make it easier for T'Pol. When that Terra Primer called her – I quote 'Vulcan whore' – each and every fuse blew in my head and all the pent up rage came to the surface."

"Do I get that right? You suppressed every negative feeling since the incident with that V'Lon fellow to protect your wife? Damn, that's an express ticket to clinical depression!"

"That was my assessment as well," T'Pol took over. "I knew that the only way to prevent that from happening was to cause an expression of such suppressed emotions. As the example of the saboteur shows, the problem had advanced to a point where it became dangerous to Commander Tucker. We have been practicing Suus Manah techniques for over two years now, so I knew that we were both able to defend ourselves against each others attacks. I initiated a Suus Manah fight, so that Commander Tucker could release all the suppressed emotions channeled towards me without endangering the rest of the crew."

"I see your point Commander," the Admiral answered. "But I still have a Lieutenant from security with a dislocated jaw, because you stomped on his face."

"This is a mistake on my behalf. Once I had eradicated Commander Tucker's control, the so far suppressed emotions were released without restraint. The force of that was so overwhelming that my control failed as well. At that point of the fight any advancing person was perceived as a danger. The Lieutenant's intentions were noble but ill-advised. I have conveyed my apology already and Lieutenant Grant understands."

"Do I get this right? When you broke his control and Commander Tucker finally let all his pent up anger out, it was so strong that it fried your brain and made you lose control as well?"

"A crude but sufficiently accurate description, Admiral," T'Pol nodded. "Since the bond is not fully mature yet, both of us are still adapting. I'm often hit unprepared by spontaneous emotions that are transmitted. Since I have never been bonded before it is not only Commander Tucker who has to adapt to it. That is why Vulcans have to live together for a year after the marriage ceremony. The time during which a bond matures is a learning experience for both mates, especially if one of them is not a Vulcan. There is no precedent for a bond between a Vulcan and a human."

"I see. I think that might be good enough to save you from a court martial, but those who oppose your marriage will have a field day using that against you. They might demand to break that bond thing."

"Ain't gonna happen, Admiral," Trip interrupted. "First of all, one or both of us could suffer from neurological damage if we tried to sever the bond and there's a good chance that one or both of us die in the process."

"Aren't you exaggerating a bit Commander? I mean if Vulcan couples have such a thing, one is always going to die before the other. So there are enough Vulcans who have had their bond severed."

"That is true, Admiral," T'Pol explained. "But in most cases the second mate dies within several days after the first mate's death."

The Admirals face went pale. "So... what are you proposing? I must tell them something to convince them that this will not happen again."

"The root of the problem was Commander Tuckers ill-advised attempt at suppressing his emotions. This mistake will not be repeated," T'Pol explained.

"You two do nothing the easy way," Gardner sighed. "Anyway. I see what I can do for you. Commander Tucker, no more suppressing in the future and no more fights. Gardner out."

"Aye, Sir," they answered in unison.

* * *

"Good morning," Erika opened the briefing. _Columbia's _senior officers where joined by two former, currently slightly dented, senior officers of _Enterprise _for the final report of the investigation of the incident with shuttlepod 1.

"Three days ago, about 1 hour after we arrived in Vulcan orbit, there was an unauthorized transport," a recovered Lt. Grant reported. "The Vulcan Ministry of Security has confirmed our suspicion, that this transport was initiated by a crew member of _Columbia _to retrieve the Vulcan devices that were later installed in our shuttle pods. Interrogation of Crewman Aklund has revealed that he was responsible for both the unauthorized transport as well as the installation of the devices."

"How can a simple crewman have the knowledge to operate the transporter and install the devices?" Trip asked.

"I'm coming to that," Grant answered. "According to his own testimony, Aklund was recruited by a splinter cell of remaining Terra Prime activists in Malmö, Sweden. Using stolen Starfleet documents he was trained in two main subjects – transporters and Starfleet shuttle craft. He is a trained engineer with years of experience in civilian freighter maintainance, so it was not difficult for him to pass all the engineering tests before enlisting in Starfleet."

"That all sounds a bit far fetched," Trip interrupted again. "I mean, what were the odds to get someone trained, enlisted and posted on the correct ship to be at the right place at the right time? And to top it off, how could he have known that T'Pau would be transported on one of our shuttles, let alone that she'd be on _Columbia_ in the first place?"

"Admiral Jesper Ingvaldson," Grant deadpanned.

"Sounds Swedish and makes me sick to the stomach," Trip groaned when he realized that this was more than a misguided crewman's action.

"Aklund didn't act alone," Grant continued. "He ratted out the whole cell; gave us 25 names, including Admiral Ingvaldson – former Admiral Ingvaldson. He has admitted to having posted Aklund to _Columbia._"

"It was Ingvaldson, who asked me to invite the Minister and to provide transport before we came here," Erika added.

Trip was shocked. "The top brass was involved in this?"

"Ingvaldson was an isolated incident. Starfleet security is still investigating, but so far no one else has been found to have contact with any Terra Prime suspects," Grant explained. "They believe that the Malmö group was one of the strongest remaining splinter cells, so this might be the final blow to Terra Prime."

"How did you get Aklund to tell you all the names?"

"I gave him a simple choice. Start talking or Commanders Tucker and T'Pol will try their luck. Considering his recent cosmetic misadventure he chose the former." Grant replied dryly.

"You know that he will use the threat of violence to save his ass," Trip said wide-eyed.

"I didn't threaten him. I just said that you would continue the interrogation, should I fail to gain sufficient information. If the crewman fantasized about any violence, then that's his problem."

"Can't believe that there are still people believing in that Terra Prime shit."

"Well, its always the same," Grant sighed. "Aklunds parents were both retired and had moved to Florida just 5 years ago. You can probably guess the rest."

"I can," Trip said. "Let's hope they round up the rest of those idiots."

* * *

"Cap'n can we do some warp trials later today?" Trip asked as the officers started to leave the briefing room.

"What for?" Erika asked.

"Well, Kelby and I want to test what she handles like at warp 5.2 and above," Trip answered with a grin.

"We already did that, Commander and we had Jonathan piggy backing in our warp field. We almost blew up the engines in the process," Erika replied.

"We think with a few modifications we can make those speeds safe," Kelby added.

"Ok, I can't argue with two engineers," Erika relented with a smile.

* * *

"See this routine?" Trip asked and pointed to the view screen.

"It's the intermix ratio control; keeps it in between the tolerance parameters," Kelby answered, not knowing where Trip was going with that.

"Well, thing is. We just adjusted the intermix ratio to .2 microns. When the ship hits warp 5.0 this routine will become completely useless. See here? That's when we went over 5.0 It starts oscillating the ratio between -0.2 and 0.2, because it can't keep up. That costs us at least a 0.1 of warp speed."

"So you want to sidestep it?"

"Yes. We found this out, when we reached warp 5 for the very first time. We tried to outrun some Mazarite thugs, who were hell bent on killing Ambassador V'Lar. I was at the controls and saw the intermix ratio oscillate. Found the solution later with a little help from T'Pol. When it comes to programming, she mops the floor with everyone I know."

"But bypassing it would mean the intermix ratio must be controlled manually," Kelby noted.

"That's the plan. And that's where experience comes in. It takes a while, but you'll soon develop a feeling for how to keep it steady."

"So, you built in a doorstop that bypasses the routines at warp 5 and higher and control the intermix ratio manually. I think that could work," Kelby answered.

"Ready for a test? I'll upload T'Pol's patch and you'll control the intermix ratio."

"Let's do it," Kelby said and reached for the com. "Kelby to bridge. Request warp trial run at warp 5.2 for 5 minutes."

"Granted, Commander," Erika answered and instructed helm to go to warp 5.2.

"Looking good, Tony." Trip stood beside Kelby, watching the young engineers adjustments. "Try to anticipate the changes a bit earlier. See this? She's got a tendency to drop, so just keep her slightly pushing. Any abrupt change and you'll sacrifice speed. Better 3 minor changes than one big change."

"Damn, this keeps you on your toes, doesn't it?" Kelby huffed, sweating from the immense concentration he had summon to keep up with the rapidly fluctuating intermix ratio.

"Why do you think I love this job," Trip laughed.

A slight shudder signaled that the ship had gone out of warp. The 5 minutes were up and Kelby was exhausted by the unfamiliar routine.

"So, what's the verdict?" Erika asked over the com.

"Looking good," Kelby answered. "I'll need a bit of training with this, but I think we're good for warp 5.2 any time we need it. I'd like to run one last test Captain."

"What do you want to test?"

"I'd like to observe Commander Tucker, when he controls the intermix ratio. And maybe becoming the chief engineer on Starfleets fastest ship would be a nice added bonus," Kelby replied with a grin.

"That's the spirit," Erika answered.

"Helm, prepare for trial run, maximum warp," Erika ordered and made herself comfortable in the big char.

"Ready," reported the young ensign.

"Bridge to engineering, we're ready. Don't disappoint us."

"Acknowledged. We're good to go."

"Ensign, pedal to the metal," Erika ordered and the ship jumped to warp.

"warp 5.1... 5.2..." the Ensign called out.

Down in engineering Kelby was watching Trip's gentle adjustments to the intermix ratio. It were subtle changes, in tune with the engine. Tucker seemed to know the fluctuations before they even happened. It was as if he was dancing with the machine. Now it became clear where the image of the miracle worker came from. This man knew that device inside out and it showed.

"Ok, Tony, push the injectors to 118%."

"Aye, but if you blow up my engines, I'll kick your ass," Kelby laughed.

Up on the bridge the officers waited in rapt anticipation for the magic call.

"5.2... steady... still 5.2..., warp 5.3," the helmsman reported and broke into a grin.

"Hold her steady, ensign," Erika directed his attention back to the console.

_Columbia,_ now the fastest ship in Starfleets history, kept going for another 5 minutes, before the call came from engineering. "Engineering to bridge, drop to warp 4.8"

"Acknowledged," Erika answered, while Trip and Kelby exchanged high five's in engineering.

* * *

"Congratulations, Commander," Admiral Gardner said after the transmission had started.

"Thank you, Sir." Trip replied.

"I don't think your former CO will be too thrilled that you smashed _Enterprise's _record. Anyway, this is not why I am calling. You'll be happy to hear that I could convince the top brass not to court martial you for your little kumite aboard _Columbia_."

"We are gratified to hear that," T'Pol replied.

"Well, thank Lt. Grant. He testified in your favor and Starfleet is embarrassed enough with Ingvaldson. When you arrive back on Earth, you are to report to my office immediately."

"Understood Sir," the couple answered.

* * *

"What are you doing?" T'Pol asked.

"Proof reading my message, before I send it to Kov."

"I do not entirely understand, how you and Kov became so closely acquainted in such a short time. As I recall you needed over a decade to become so close with Captain Archer."

"Well, the chemistry is just right. I don't know if that was ever the case with Jon. Jon is a born Captain. If needed he gets into that one track mind and secludes himself, just as it happened in the Expanse. Guess that's when we stopped being best friends. Of course there was this drop-dead gorgeous Vulcan who helped me cope, instead of Jon," he said with a grin. "Wanna help me proof read it?"

She nodded and to his surprise she didn't get a second chair, but sat in his lap, angled at 90° and steadied herself by putting an arm around his neck.

_Hi Kov,_

_Thank you for your last message. I'm sorry that it took me so long to reply, but the last few days were a bit hectic, to say the least._

_First things first. Big thumbs-up for your first date with Anna and stop doubting yourself. The fact that she has accepted the invitation to a second date means that she enjoyed it, so your courtship is perfectly suitable. Just take it slow. She might look muscular and come across a bit bossy, but in reality she's a hopeless romantic. She wants to be courted the old fashioned way. Ask Hoshi for advice, she can also help you with how to pick up those subtle signals, that human females are so fond of sending. Best of luck to you, Romeo._

_I've given it a lot of thought, if it would be a good idea to tell you, what comes next. In the end I decided that I can trust you to keep it a secret. What you called 'a fascination with Minister T'Pau' has a pretty good reason. We adopted her, or more precisely she adopted us as her god parents, using some ancient ritual from Surak's time. It is a mind meld without any barriers, unlimited so to speak. High Priest Torok thinks that we might even develop a parental bond. I would really like that, but I have the telepathic abilities of a brick, so it is unlikely. T'Pol thinks, that maybe the Betazoids can tickle my brain with some telepathic training one day, so please behave y'all, when you get there. _

_The mind meld takes a while to take effect for my two ladies, but, me being an emotional human, it had an almost instant effect on me. Just a few hours after the meld I went all protective daddy. It scared the daylights out of me, since we only learned what it meant shortly before our wedding. Two days ago, T'Pau suddenly started calling me father. I almost burst a blood vessel from trying not to make a completely indecent show of 'happy dad'. She may not be of our blood, but I sure love her to bits._

_Keep an eye on Rostov. You think it was an accident, but I think it is more than that. It's a bad cliche that all Russians drink like there's no tomorrow, but I'm afraid in Rostov's case it might actually be true. If you notice that he is shaking often, especially the hands, or that he has the runs frequently, report him to the Captain. The earlier he gets help, the better. I've seen him drop tools more than once, so I think he's got a problem with alcohol, or more specifically, without it._

_And now, I'm entitled to brag. Please inform your CO, that he is no longer the Captain of the fastest ship in the fleet. That honor does now belong to his old flame, Captain Erika Hernandez. Earlier today we did some trial runs and with T'Pol's intermix routine we pushed her to 5.3 for a good 5 minutes. I suppose, you have your work cut out for you, my friend. Kelby is just starting to get the hang of this, but he'll be a worthy opponent. _

_Of course that is all academic, as I plan to blow both of you into the middle of next week, when I do the trial runs with Challenger. Professor Solan thinks she'll be capable of 5.5 on a good day. _

_We'll arrive on Earth tomorrow, so I'll take my time for a longer message once we're home. A nice peace and long live from T'Pol, too. _

_Take care, Trip._

T'Pol looked in his eyes. "I did not realize that your affection for T'Pau runs so deep."

"All Tuckers love their kids to pieces, darlin'". He drew her closer and silently enjoyed their contact.

* * *

When they entered Gardners office they noticed his strange posture. The Admiral sat ramrod straight with his hands below the table. _He is hiding something, _T'Pol thought.

"Admiral, Commanders T'Pol and Charles Tucker III, reporting as ordered," Trip announced formally.

"Have a seat," Gardner replied. "Commander Tucker, consider yourself reprimanded verbally for attacking a crewman aboard _Columbia._ There will be no formal entry to your files, but I expect this to be the last occurrence of such behavior."

"Understood Admiral. May I ask how I got off that lightly? Not that I'm complaining, of course..."

"Starfleet wouldn't want to be accused of double standard," Gardner answered vaguely.

Seeing the questioning looks on the Commanders faces, he explained further.

"When we learned that Ingvaldson was behind the attempt to kill Minister T'Pau, he was hurled out of a staff meeting by Starfleet Security. Let's just say, that his face didn't look quite the way it did when he entered the meeting," Gardner recalled and put his hands on the table, revealing a bandage over the knuckles of his right hand.

"I think, I get your point, Admiral."

"Not the most glorious chapter in Starfleet history, but damn, that was the most satisfying pain I've ever felt," Gardner replied. "Now for you two. You're on medical leave for two weeks, until your faces look normal again. You, Commander Tucker, will report to a Counselor. With all due respect to Commander T'Pol's unusual therapeutic methods, we want an expert to confirm that you're psychologically fit for duty."

"Understood, Sir."

"Last thing," Gardner continued. "I got a call from Minister T'Pau. She asks you to call her back as soon as you arrive in that new house of yours. She seems to be quite fond of you two."

"That goes both ways," Trip answered. "Thank you, Admiral."

"The transmission codes have already been forwarded to your new home. Dismissed."

* * *

"May I ask what you're doing here?" Trip asked the two heavily armed Vulcans that were standing in front of the gates to Bayside Manor – the newest Tucker domicile in California.

"I am Major Setak. Since you are both citizens of Vulcan, the Ministry of Security is responsible for your safety."

"You mean to say we have our own guards?"

"There will be a security detail posted here at all times."

"I think, I know who did this," Trip said to T'Pol as they entered through the gates.

"It is logical to conclude that T'Pau is responsible for that decision. She seems concerned about our safety. There is no other logical explanation for her request to call her."

"Maybe she misses daddy," Trip laughed.

"She does," T'Pol delivered casually. Trip looked at her in surprise.

"She appears quite... attached to you," she explained further.

"You don't think she has... you know... a crush on me, do you? That would be the last thing I need."

"If you refer to a romantic interest – no. She does however look up to you in a way. You represent many things that are rarely found in Vulcan culture. You have a talent to improvise, you have a strong sense of humor and you are compassionate. In contrast to many other Vulcans, she perceives these traits as gifts rather than flaws, as do I."

"Right, enough flattery, darlin'," Trip said and kissed his wife senseless once they were inside the house.

"Figures that mom has no idea about Vulcan physiology," he muttered. Cathryn had set the air conditioning to moderate human temperatures, which were quite chilling for a Vulcan. He adjusted the controls to a warmer setting before returning to 'warm up' his wife in a tight embrace.

"Please call T'Pau, she is waiting. I shall put our belongings in storage," T'Pol said.

* * *

"Hi there, hon," Trip smiled as T'Pau's serene face appeared on the screen.

"It is agreeable to see you, father."

"Thanks for the bodyguards, do you think that's really necessary?

"I do not wish to take risks. I am in a position to provide security forces, so it would be illogical not to do so. "

He could have sworn that he had heard a sigh. Trip narrowed his eyes. "This whole leadership stuff is getting too much, isn't it. You've spent an awful lot of time with us, while we were on Vulcan and now we're gone. "

"It is... taxing."

"That's a nice way to say, 'I've had it'. I don't know much about politics, let alone the Vulcan variety, but sure you can get some people, who you trust, to help you."

"That would be difficult. The High Council is still dominated by back room diplomacy and hidden agendas, change is coming slow. The only other person I can trust unconditionally, besides you and T'Pol, is Ambassador Soval. If I asked Soval to come to my aid, it wouldl be seen as a sign of weakness. Admiral V'Kar would not wait a single minute to use that against me."

"I don't think that'll be necessary. I can make sure that Soval calls himself asking for a transfer home. I think his 'mediator' can convince him of the logic behind it."

T'Pau realized his intention and nodded with a high eyebrow.

"I'll probably have to reveal the nature of our relationship though," Trip explained.

"You may disclose any information you deem necessary. Perhaps you may wish to omit a description our our parting ritual," T'Pau answered with a hint of teasing.

"You really like that lil' peck on the cheek, don't you," Trip teased back.

"Although not appropriate by Vulcan protocol, it is most agreeable."

"Ok, you take good care of yourself, hon. I'll be off to the Embassy first thing tomorrow."

"I will," T'Pau answered with a nod, before the transmission ended.

Trip sat for a while, lost in thought, before he got up to help his wife.

"Is she well?" T'Pol asked, when he entered their bedroom.

"Not as well as she should be, but I'll do something about that tomorrow."

* * *

Admiral Gardner, who was just about to leave after a routine meeting with senior staff of the Embassy, did a double take when he saw Commander Tucker enter the main hall of the Vulcan Embassy. He was wearing Vulcan civilian clothing.

"Commander?" Gardner greeted, slightly confused.

"Good morning Admiral," Trip replied.

"May I ask, why you are wearing Vulcan attire?"

"Well, Admiral. I'm here with a civilian request to Ambassador Soval and I'm a Vulcan citizen. I think it is a matter of respect that I dress accordingly."

"Oh, yes, I forgot that," the Admiral remembered. "I suppose it is a personal thing, but I trust you to inform me if it interferes with your duty to Earth and Starfleet," Gardner reminded him, but more rhetorically than anything else.

"Don't worry, it's an entirely Vulcan matter," Trip explained and with a nod he left Gardner behind.

* * *

"The Ambassador will see you now," Chief assistant Sikor informed the waiting Commander and indicated him to enter Soval's office.

"Live long and prosper, Ambassador"

"Peace and long life, Commander," Soval returned, while the two men exchanged the Ta'al.

"I've come with a personal request, so I would prefer to discuss the matter in private," Trip explained. Soval picked up the clue and motioned Sikor to leave them alone.

"I take it you know T'Pau personally?" Trip opened. "She told me that you are one of the very few persons, she trusts unconditionally."

"She asked my advice frequently, when she became First Minister," Soval answered.

"She could use your advice now, permanently," Trip continued. "I've been afraid for some time now, that she's overburdened with being First Minister. 32 might be old enough on Earth - for a Vulcan she's barely out of adolescence. Yesterday she finally admitted it, but she told me, that she can't ask you for help, since this Admiral V'Kar would use that against her."

"From the very familiar way, in which you speak about the Minister, I surmise that you know her personally as well?" Soval asked back, with a puzzled brow.

"It's even more than that, but you'll realize that soon enough," Trip answered and Soval's eyebrow went even higher in confusion.

"So how can I be of assistance?" he asked.

"Well, I'm about to ask quite a lot of you. It would be a real help for her, if you requested your return to Vulcan. Your upcoming marriage with Ambassador V'Lar would be a good cover. V'Lon's job is still vacant and I know T'Pau would like to see you take up that position. There's a lot of change coming up on Vulcan and she needs someone with your experience to guide and support her."

"I see you have given this a lot of thought and you may be relieved to hear that you are actually asking less than you expected," Soval explained. "I planned to formally request my return to Vulcan in the near future for my wedding ceremony, so your request would merely change the time of my return. How urgent do you think the situation is?"

"I know Vulcans have a great deal more discipline and can function quite well, even under stress, but she looked very tired and don't forget that she's basically just a little girl. Sooner or later she'll make a mistake and that V'Kar fellow didn't strike me as someone, who'd pass up a chance to use that to gain more power. I've only seen him twice, but hell, with his eye patch thing – I think he's the first Vulcan I ever saw, who deliberately tried to look intimidating."

"I must admit that I would not readily concur with your assessment. Minister T'Pau may be young, but she is wise beyond her years," Soval countered.

"And that exactly is the problem. She was forced to act twice her age since childhood. Hell, even High Priest Torok said that the Syrranites made a mess of her upbringing," Trip replied, gesticulating in growing agitation. "Normally I wouldn't talk about this, but you need to understand. When she was alone with me and T'Pol, she allowed herself to act like a youth, knowing that neither T'Pol nor me would take offense. Trust me, if Vulcans would express their emotions, she would have giggled like a school girl during those times."

"I never looked at it from that perspective. A most unusual insight. If your assessment is correct, we do not have much time," Soval answered and started walking back and forth slowly, in deep thought. "I shall request my return immediately," he said and walked over to the view screen, motioning Trip to stand at his side.

"I can establish a secure connection to Vulcan. There should be no Council activity at the moment," Soval explained, while he punched a couple of security codes into a console.

After a while T'Pau's face appeared on the screen.

"Ambassador, Father," she nodded and Soval looked first at her than at Trip. All the decades of experience in mastering his emotions could not prevent the expression of utter surprise on his face.

"Have you spoken to the Ambassador?" she asked Trip.

"Yes, hon, I did and I think the Ambassador has a request to make," he answered smiling about Soval's fight for composure after the next surprise.

"Yes," Soval continued once he regained his calm. "I wish to request relief from my current posting as Ambassador to Earth and wish to be posted in an appropriate position on Vulcan."

"What are the reasons for your request," T'Pau fished for something plausible and unsuspicious to write in the official announcement.

"I wish to return to the home world to perform my marriage ceremony with my chosen mate and I wish to reside with her on Vulcan from that time on, as our tradition demands."

"Very well, Ambassador," T'Pau replied. "Your request shall be granted. Do you have a proposal for your successor?"

"Chief assistant Sikor is sufficiently trained and competent to be promoted to Ambassador to Earth, Minister."

"Inform me, as soon as you have completed the transition. A formal decree will reach the Embassy within the hour," T'Pau announced formally, before addressing Trip, deliberately using an Earth expression. "Thank you father."

"My pleasure, hon," he grinned back.

The transmission ended after T'Pau and the Ambassador had nodded each other goodbye. Soval stared at Trip.

"You are Minister T'Pau's En'ahr'at?" Soval asked after a moment of silence. As a pupil of High Priest Torok he was one of the very few Vulcans, who still knew about this ancient, almost lost ritual.

"Appears so," Trip explained. "She chose both me and T'Pol accidentally, but all three of us decided that it was a good thing."

"That explains your unusual insight. You are a remarkable man, Commander Tucker," Soval said.

"I get enough flattery from my wife, thanks," Trip laughed. "But I'd like to ask you a favor. When the situation on Vulcan allows, would you please send her off to spend a week or two on Earth?"

"I do not believe that I have the authority to... send off the First Minister," Soval objected with a confused-brow.

"Just tell her that I asked you to, she's a good girl and won't disobey daddy," Trip joked and laughed. Of course Soval did not join that entirely human ritual.


	9. Russian Amenities

**17. Russian Amenities**

_A/N: _

_Attention: This chapter is rated M (NC-17)_

_Trip and T'Pol are on medical leave until their faces are back to normal. Trip does what every good engineer does when he's bored, or doesn't he? One of Trip's ideas turns things rather hot. I'm shamelessly stealing a thought out of a Startrek movie here as well, but it just fit. :-) _

_This is also where things get a little more smutty. It's my first attempt at writing a full blown adult scene, so I do not know if it comes over as vulgar or erotic, we'll see. This chapter is rather domestic, with lots of slow and non-lethal activities, but the space battles are soon to come in the next chapters. _

"Would you stop cleaning, darlin'?" Trip asked. "We've been here almost 24 hours already and we haven't even taken a look at the estate."

Nodding silently she joined him on the patio. Before them was a huge meadow and nearby stood a small building with big wooden sliding doors.

"Looks like a garage of sort," Trip muttered and T'Pol followed him to inspect it. He slid open one of the big doors and his face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"It appears to be an animal shelter," T'Pol analyzed.

"Horse stable. It's pretty small, there can't have been more than 2 or 3 in here." Trip explained. The barrage of joy that resonated in the bond could only mean that her husband meant to bring this building back to its intended function.

"Do you intend to acquire such an animal," T'Pol asked. She remembered the rather awkward journey on such a creature during their visit to the Northstar colony in the Expanse.

"Two," Trip smiled back. "Riding with two people on one horse is not a good idea. Even if you weigh next to nothing, it's still bad for the horse's back."

"Why do you assume that I would wish to ride on a horse?"

"Because it's fun and a good workout, too. And we wont have to mow the lawn. They'll keep it short at all times."

"I doubt that we will have the time to care for such creatures. What if we have to go back into space again or leave to visit Vulcan?"

"Well, darlin', we'll have to hire an equerry anyways. It's not like we're poor people and can't afford that."

"I am not comfortable with other persons entering our private space," T'Pol answered sternly.

_Damn, she's nesting. _Trip thought. "Well, look darlin'. Nobody gets past the two bouncers outside the gate, so we know whenever the equerry is coming and I'll make sure that, whoever we hire, knows about a Vulcan's need for privacy. And I'll set up a strict schedule, so you won't be having any surprise visits," Trip explained and flashed her the irresistible Tucker blues, hoping that she would consent.

"It is an acceptable compromise," T'Pol nodded. "What purpose does this device serve?" she asked and pointed to a structure, sitting on what looked like a rubber mat. It had a caged fan attached to it.

"Hm," Trip hummed, inspecting the vehicle. "Looks like the former owner was both a nostalgic and an engineer. That's a hovercraft, late 20th or early 21st century design. This one is nowhere near old enough, though. At that time they were still using internal combustion engines and this one has a fusion engine."

"I do not see the logic in building a device that has been obsolete for more than a century," T'Pol said.

"It's because they are more fun than today's hover cars," Trip grinned, while he fumbled with the reactor controls. The device appeared to be fully functional. "My great granddad had some of those. We used to ride on them to the bay. Open the second door darlin', I think it's still working."

While T'Pol slid open the second door, she heard the fan starting to spin behind her. Swinging around she saw that the 'rubber mat' below the strange vehicle turned into an air filled cushion and her husband turned into a child.

Whooping and giggling like an adolescent he rode past her and sped across the meadow in erratic pattern, just inches above the ground. The bond was transmitting emotions that she had never encountered before – childlike joy.

After another wild swoop across the lawn, he brought the vehicle to a stop next to his wife. "Hop in, darlin'," he instructed with a wide grin. Logic dictated that mounting this mechanical contraption was not a wise choice, but the unbridled joy of her husband overruled all logic.

As soon as she was strapped in, Trip opened the taps and they sped across the lawn. Only humans would find it agreeable to operate a vehicle - deliberately - at unsafe velocities. The really troubling thought however was, that she found it an agreeable sensation as well. Like many of her actions and experiences in connection with her human husband, Vulcan logic had no explanation for it. After several minutes of riding across the vast sea of green grass, they came up to a forest. Only a small path split the trees, too narrow to maneuver it safely by hovercraft. Trip brought the vehicle to a stop and helped his wife out of her seat.

"Damn," he said still grinning from ear to ear. "This looks like something straight out of paradise."

He took T'Pol's hand and they started walking down the little path through the small forest. After only a few minutes of walking, the forest gave way to another patch of grass that led down to a small beach on a lake. Trip let go of T'Pol's hand and wandered across the scenery, silent, while a mixture of stunned disbelief, childlike joy and happiness hummed in T'Pol's mind, courtesy of their mental connection.

"I sense an unusual sensation of infantile felicity for the second time today," T'Pol inquired. "May I ask the reason for this?"

"When mom told me about all this, I thought she was exaggerating," he explained with a glassy far away look. "But this is better than anything I ever imagined. I have a wife, my own house, my own beach," he mused, grabbing said wife in a passionate embrace. T'Pol kept silent, letting the passion and happiness of her husband wash over through the bond.

After a while Trip removed himself from the embrace and his eyes narrowed. T'Pol had learned that this was a trademark Tucker sign for the forming of an idea. Trip started walking with long steps in rectangular pattern, muttering to himself.

"May I ask, what you are planning to construct?" T'Pol interrupted his mutterings.

"How do you know that I'm planning to construct something?"

"Trip," she explained with her typical eye roll. "You are an engineer on leave. If you cannot construct or repair something for any period of time, your emotional state will become insufferable. Since we have just taken over this estate, it is logical to assume, that you wish to add some structures for your or our convenience. Adding to that, you appeared to be measuring distances, although you employed a rather crude and therefore inherently inaccurate method. As Captain Hernandez explained, I added 1 and 1 and came up with something other than 11."

"Impeccable logic as always, darlin'," he laughed. "No fooling you; yeah, I'm building something, but I'll have you guess... uh logically deduce what it is, when I have drawn up the plans."

Dawn was approaching and the two newest members of the 'Tucker house owners club' made their way back to the house. After Trip had stored the vehicle back in the stable, T'Pol returned to her cleaning chores, while Trip lost no time and started his planning work immediately. One of the rooms on the first floor was designated to be their joined office. As both had the habit of taking work home, they had equipped this room with two big desks.

T'Pol was unable to find an explanation, why her husband insisted on performing the planning work using large sheets of paper, plastic and wooden stencils of various shapes and sizes as well as wooden drawing devices with a graphite core. By all that she knew, these methods had gone out of favor a century before her birth, but she mentally filed it away as a manifestation of her husbands fondness for historic manners and rituals.

"You have been busy with your planning for several hours now," T'Pol reminded him long after the chronometer had passed midnight. "I think we should retire now."

Trip laughed silently to himself. Their marriage was barely a few weeks old, but whenever his wife reminded him to retire, it was her way to say that she did not intend to go to sleep immediately. Having a rather healthy libido himself, Trip was nonetheless amazed by her need for physical intimacy. Ever the devoted husband, he couldn't possibly refuse such a tempting offer and followed her upstairs into the bedroom.

* * *

T'Pol woke up the next morning to find the space beside her vacated. Trip was not a morning man, so his early departure was confusing. Slightly puzzled, she grabbed her white silk robe and threw it over her naked body and went to investigate the whereabouts of her mate. She had a suspicion. Coming down the stairs, she saw the door to their office open. True to her suspicion, Trip sat at his desk, dressed in nothing but his sweat pants and was eagerly drawing and calculating away at his mysterious project.

"Obviously this project does draw more interest than your wife," she said in a mock scold.

Not saying a word and still seated, he undid the tie of her robe, opened it and grabbed her naked buttocks. Since the height was perfect, he slightly bowed down and planted a hot kiss accompanied by several slight tongue strokes bang smack in the middle of pleasure central. Breaking the kiss, he closed her robe and tied it again. Looking up into his green blushed, panting wife's eyes, he asked - "Does that answer your question, darlin'?" - and returned to his plans, leaving T'Pol dumbstruck.

"I have no further doubts," she croaked, before leaving on very weak knees to prepare the morning meal.

* * *

T'Pol entered the small meditation room that they had set up adjacent to their bedroom. After almost two days of cleaning and settling in, she had finally found time to catch up on much needed meditation. Trip had left to order materials and look around for opportunities to buy horses.

_It appears that my adun settles for permanent residency in this location, _she thought. _There would be no other logically sound explanation for his desire to erect structures for our convenience or to acquire domesticated animals that require a great deal of care. _

Further contemplation led to the realization that she had almost the same intentions. Four years of space travel, that in many cases were dominated by armed conflict, were not a prospect that either of them was too eagerly looking forward to. T'Pol made a mental resolution to discuss the topic with her mate.

* * *

"Was your tour productive?" she asked, when Trip came home.

"Yeah, " he reported. "I got all materials that I'll need, a new welding equipment as well. I dropped by a horse farm. I think I found two promising candidates to enter the Tucker stable."

"We should first hire the personnel, before thinking of acquiring any animals. Neither of us is experienced in tending to such creatures."

"Well, I think I have that already taken care of. There's a Vulcan working part time on that farm – pretty decent kid. He would be willing to take over as part time equerry here."

"Why would a Vulcan work on an Earth farm?" she asked, slightly confused.

"His name is Segal. He's one of the V'tosh K'atur, we ran into a couple years back. He left the ship together with Kov and others, after they heard what Tolaris had done to you. Since they weren't exactly welcome on Vulcan, most of them decided to stay on Earth and make a living here, since humans wouldn't mind their knack for emotions. On the contrary, it made interaction easier for them."

T'Pol cringed at the memory of Tolaris.

"I figured that a Vulcan would be perfect for the job," Trip continued. "He might not suppress all his emotions, but he surely has a better understanding for your needs for privacy than any human would."

"That was most thoughtful. I concur that a Vulcan would be well suited to the work. I did not approve of their lifestyle at the time, but since I chose a non-traditional path myself, I have developed an understanding and a tolerance for it."

"I had hoped you'd say that. I've invited him to drop by tomorrow. You can give him the third degree then."

"There is something else I wish to discuss," T'Pol started. "During my meditation I came to the conclusion that neither of us appears intent on returning to extended missions in outer space. Is this conclusion correct?"

"Can't speak for you darlin', but I certainly don't wanna return. I've had it that everybody and his dog is shooting at us. I'll still have to go out there from time to time, when I'll be test driving new ships, but I'll be perfectly happy with living here on Earth and on Vulcan."

"That is my desire, too. Will you not regret that you never had your own command? Captain Archer once told me that this was one of your most important ambitions."

"Ambitions change, darlin'. Now my biggest ambition is to live with you and hopefully having a little pointy eared baby or two in the future. I'll be happy to nail new ships together and come home to my family every evening or at least most evenings. We Tuckers are all family men."

"I would find such a future most agreeable as well, Ashayam."

* * *

Three days later T'Pol was roused from meditation by loud, rhythmic clacking sounds, coming from outside. She stood and went downstairs to investigate.

As she came out of the house, she saw her husband and the recently hired Segal, each leading a horse.

"I surmise that these are the animals you acquired?" T'Pol asked as the two approached.

"Yep," Trip answered with an almost Phlox-like grin.

"It is agreeable to see you, Lady T'Pol," Segal offered. "These are Ars Vivendi," he explained, pointing to the brown horse that Trip was leading. "and Beryoza, two of the best horses in our stable. Your husband chose wisely."

"It is agreeable to see you as well, Segal," T'Pol returned politely and mustered the two new arrivals.

"I instructed your husband in the basics of tending to their needs and we also established a schedule for me to perform the more complex duties," Segal explained and fished a small PADD from his pocket, handing it to T'Pol.

"Very well. Meet me inside after you settled the animals in," T'Pol answered politely and left the two men to their task. "

* * *

"I have reviewed the schedule, you proposed," T'Pol opened as she sat down with Trip and Segal. "I find it acceptable. Are you sure that the creature's needs are met, even if we are away for longer periods of time?"

"Yes, Lady T'Pol. If either of you is at home it is sufficient to just let them out of the stable for several hours. The vast area of grass will give them sufficient possibility to run and therefore fulfill their need for exercise. By grazing they will also satisfy most of their nutritional needs. A helping of hay in the morning and in the evening will suffice to complete their feeding. When you are not here, they will spend more time inside the stable, but they shall be engaged in a more intense workout scheme, in order to give them the necessary exercise."

"Very well, is there more, we need to know?"

"Your husband expressed his interest in learning to ride, so I shall be instructing him whenever opportunities present themselves. If you wish, I shall render the same service to you."

"I am still undecided on the issue," T'Pol answered. "I do not see the logic of such activity. There are far more sophisticated methods of transport, like the hovercraft that we have discovered. May I ask your opinion on the matter."

"My initial opinion was the same as yours," Segal explained. "I soon discovered that it is not only a beneficial activity for the horses, but for the rider as well. It might not look that way, but riding is an intensive activity, beneficial for the preservation of one's fitness and health."

"I see," T'Pol returned. "I shall try it before making my final decision on the matter."

* * *

The next day T'Pol watched her husband's first lesson with Segal. It would only be a few days before the medical leave was about to end, so Trip had decided to make the best of the available time and had scheduled daily lessons. T'Pol on the other hand was still undecided. If the latest bond transmissions, however were any indication, he seemed to enjoy it immensely.

"We shall try the trot again, Commander," Segal instructed while Vivendi changed her gait from walk to trot. "Remember; stand up, sit down, stand up, sit down, match the horse's frequency."

T'Pol observed Vivendi, who was tethered on a lunge, running in circles. She found the sight of her mate gracefully rising and setting from and into the saddle fairly enjoyable. The training continued for several minutes, before Trip suddenly mismatched the frequency of his steed. He sat back just as Vivendi's back shot upwards, resulting in a spectacular jettisoning of her rider. Trip was catapulted forward and went down. He absorbed the impact on the ground by instinctively performing one of the defensive roll moves of the Suus Manah.

T'Pol was confused when Trip went back to Vivendi and patted her on the neck – a rewarding gesture for horses – as if he wanted to commend her for throwing him off. Trip however had merely calmed her down and rewarded her for immediately stopping once she noticed that her rider had gone flying. The training went on for over an hour without further incident, before Trip called it a day.

"So what ya think?" Trip asked, fairly out of breath.

"It appears that Segal did not exaggerate. You are in a most agreeable physical condition, yet the riding appears to have exhausted you substantially."

"You can say that," Trip wheezed. "So, wanna try it?"

"I do not have the necessary gear."

"Follow me, I bought everything you need," Trip grinned. "It's not like I don't know **all** your sizes," he added with an lusty undertone.

"It appears you're not **that **exhausted," T'Pol replied in a teasing voice as she followed him inside. Segal meanwhile started to prepare Beryoza for the lesson.

* * *

"Do we need to wear these helmets?" T'Pol asked. "While the whole ensemble looks fairly agreeable, the helmet does not."

"Yeah, at least while we're still learning, we should wear them. There are no prostheses for heads."

"Very well," T'Pol relented and donned the offensive piece of protective gear. Trip went back into the house to get a cool beer and returned to observe his wife's first riding lesson.

* * *

Trip was putting the final touches to Vivendi's evening grooming, when T'Pol appeared in the doorway, leading Beryoza.

"Wait a minute, I just tuck her in," Trip said, leading his steed into the box and freed her from the head-collar. A carrot was presented as a reward for enduring the grooming. T'Pol lead her white horse in.

"You tether her here," Trip instructed. "Whenever you need to go from one side of the horse to the other, pass below her neck, never around the backside." He took a curry-comb and started to clean the fur with steady strokes. "Try it."

T'Pol took the tool from him and started to currycomb her horse. She had one hand resting on Beryoza's neck while she worked on the flank. "She is content," T'Pol noted as she picked up the animal's calm emotional state using her touch telepathic abilities.

"I would think so. She's been having a romp around the lawn all day. That's a horse's dream. How'd you like your first riding lesson?"

"It is a surprisingly agreeable activity. I shall take part in further lessons."

"Told you, you'll like it," Trip smiled as he combed pieces of hay out of the animal's tail.

"Does the name Beryoza have a particular meaning?" T'Pol asked.

"I think so. It's Russian and means 'birch tree'. I think she was given that name for her white fur and the gray pattern."

"How do you know that? Do you speak that language?"

"Fairly well even. My great granddad lived in Russia – in Provideniya Bay. We often visited him when we were kids."

"How did a Tucker came to live in Russia? I am surprised that your second forefather was still alive when you were young."

"Well, he originally came from Alaska, Nome to be precise. Only he knows how, but he ended up marrying a girl from Anadyr in far eastern Russia. Since Provideniya is sort of half way between Nome and Anadyr, they settled there, so none of them would be too far from their families. I think good ol' granddad Chuck is to blame for the Tucker stubborn streak. He was too stubborn to die, even. He was 124 when he took the final check ride west."

"How is your planning project progressing?" T'Pol asked, while Trip showed her how to instruct the horse to lift its foot, in order to clean the hooves.

"It's actually completed. The materials were delivered about an hour after our lessons."

"Is that why you left for the beach?"

"Yep, they delivered everything by barge, so we spared ourselves the hassle of carrying all that stuff across the estate," he explained and grinned. "You'll show me your mighty logic prowess tonight by finding out what it is and tomorrow morning I'll start the construction," he grinned.

"I believe we are finished," T'Pol noted after she was done scraping all the muck out of Beryoza's right hind hoof.

Trip showed her how to correctly lead a horse into the box and T'Pol took off the head-collar before offering her horse a rewarding carrot.

* * *

"Ready to blow me away with your logic?" Trip asked gleefully, when T'Pol came out of the bathroom, ready to retire.

"I shall attempt to do so," T'Pol answered in a sultry voice. She sat down in his lap, wearing nothing but her silk bathrobe, and overlooked the pile of sheets scattered around on the table.

"A structure, divided into two rooms. The walls are constructed by stacking wooden logs. A method reminiscent of the blockhouse structures commonly built before the 21st century," she analyzed.

"Correct," Trip whispered and opened the belt of her robe, revealing her bare body.

"The first room has benches and rows of hooks on the wall, reminiscent of facilities used for attire changing in human sporting venues. It is logical to assume that this room serves the same purpose."

"Brilliant," her husband praised, while nibbling her ear. He gently started to massage her boobs.

"This is not conductive to coherent thought," T'Pol protested – not very convincingly.

"I can stop, if you want..."

"I shall endeavor to prevail... despite your... distractions," T'Pol answered hastily, prompting a smug chuckle from Trip.

"The second room has benches as well, but without the hooks. On the face side is a primitive oven. The limitations of its design make it suitable only for combustible matter such as carbon or wood."

"Getting there, darlin'," Trip whispered.

"On top of the oven is a cage-like structure containing a number of crude rocks. Logic dictates that those will be heated if the oven is operated."

"Hmm," Trip hummed and continued his gentle ministrations on her breasts. T'Pol's breath became increasingly ragged.

"Next to the oven, although not physically connected, is a fluid container. Due to the separation, the fluid will not be heated. Since the whole structure is made out of wood and contains an oven, it is logical to assume, that the fluid shall be water, stored for the case of an accidental outbreak of fire."

"Gotcha! You're wrong," Trip laughed.

"Where is the flaw in my logic?" T'Pol asked in slight confusion.

"There's none. But this is a human construction – you forgot to consider the illogical and redundant options. The fluid is indeed water, but flavored water. When the stones are hot enough, it will be poured all over them."

"This would fill the room with vapor," T'Pol realized with growing confusion. "Where is the logic in that? You cannot expect me to consider such an illogical option, especially as you impaired my coherence," she mock-complained.

"Well, darlin', the explanation for that is a project for another day, because now I'm gonna make you **really **incoherent." With that he scooped up his girl and carried her up the stairs to the bedroom. Not much sleep was had that night.

* * *

The day was still young, but Charles Tucker III was already working on his own private beach. He had snuck out of the house fairly early, eager to begin his construction work. Using the hovercraft was out of the question since either the sound of the fan or the impatient whinnying of Beryoza and Vivendi, both eager to get out, could have woken up his wife. She was still out of it from the exertions of last night, so he did not want to wake her up. When she had not even woken up as Trip wiggled himself out of their tight embrace, it had given him an idea - one involving a lipstick. _Since when did T'Pol use lipstick?  
_

"Who's damn idea was it to build a blockhouse?" Trip groaned to himself struggling to haul the next heavy log into place. He was interrupted by a stern voice from behind.

"Commander Charles Tucker III..."

Trip turned around and dropped the log, just barely missing his foot. His eyes almost bugged out. There, in the morning sun, stood his wife, naked from the waist up, giving him a mock-glare.

"uh... morning darlin'," he stuttered. "What a view!"

"I am gratified by your deep affection for me. But is it truly necessary to manifest it on my delicious parts?" T'Pol complained, pointing to the little red heart he had drawn on her left breast with her lipstick.

Trip had to suppress a hearty belly-laugh at T'Pol's failed attempt to appear upset. It was amazing, how far she had come from being the stick-in-the-ass Vulcan, who wouldn't shake a hand, to the one awarding a silly boy-prank with a glorious view and an obvious invitation for a nice groping.

Chuckling he took the cloth and the cleaning lotion she had brought and started to remove his artwork. T'Pol sighed contently, when her husband delivered the desired gentle groping after finishing the clean up.

Donning her gray stretch top T'Pol asked for the missing explanation of last night. "You have yet to explain, where the logic is in filling a room with vapor," she asked and took the previously dropped log and hauled it into position as if it was a mere twig.

"What we are building is a traditional russian Banya. In other parts of the world it is called a Sauna or a steam bath. One sits in the hot room to provoke heavy sweating. It has a cleansing effect on the skin and helps to toughen one's resilience against illnesses like the flu. The steam enhances the effect. Many also smear honey all over themselves. It gives a smoother skin."

"So it is an elaborate process to improve both resilience and appearance?"

"Exactly. Since both can nowadays be achieved by hyposprays and creams of all sorts, most people don't use that method anymore. Hell, most even know what it is."

"Understandably. Considering what amount of construction and time to perform the procedure is needed, it appears most laborious," T'Pol concurred while continuing to haul logs almost effortlessly.

"That's the whole point darlin'," Trip explained. "One sits down and has a nice chat or... um... does other things, all the while doing something for one's health. People have become so damn effective these days, they're missing out the best things in life."

"Does this procedure require a certain attire? It would appear so because of the changing room."

"Nope, this procedure does not require any attire at all, that's what the changing room is for."

"I can see why you prefer this method over a hypospray," T'Pol analyzed bluntly, but not without a pronounced giggle-brow.

"Uh huh," Trip muttered. "Thing is, I guess it won't be of much use to you, coming from a desert planet and all."

"On the contrary," T'Pol replied. "Since water on Vulcan is fairly rare, our bodies have evolved to withstand the heat without sweating, to preserve precious body fluids. It is logical to conclude however that the heat inside this chamber approaches or exceeds the boiling point of water, so it shall provoke sweating even for a Vulcan. The cleansing effect on my skin might even be more pronounced than yours, because Vulcan skin is not designed for an atmosphere as polluted as Earth's."

"Is that why you smear that purple stuff all over yourself after showering?"

"Yes, it helps my skin to withstand the aggressive chemicals in Earth's atmosphere."

"Holy cow, T'Pol," Trip wondered. "You've erected half the wall in less than an hour and without a hoist even!"

"I was not exaggerating, when I said that Vulcans possess superior strength," she admitted somewhat shyly. "I hope it does not damage your male ego that a female completed the task faster than you."

"Are you kidding?" Trip laughed. "I would have gone stark raving mad with those damn logs by now and besides, there are other ways to smother my male ego," he said before kissing her senseless again.

"I have no doubt," T'Pol panted. "You shall return to the house. Segal will arrive in 30 minutes. There are only two days left until we return to duty, you shall use the time for additional lessons. I will follow later. Until then I continue my work here."

* * *

A week later the star-crossed couple inspected their work. The blockhouse was completed, as was most of its interior. Only some finishing touches to the oven, the cage and the water container were yet to complete. But not this day. Tomorrow it was time to meet the folks. Trip had invited his parents for the afternoon and he wasn't exactly looking forward to it.

"I sense apprehension," T'Pol analyzed while they were walking back through the forest.

"Yeah," Trip admitted. "My mom will love ya right away, but I'm not so sure how my ol' man's gonna react. He was never really thrilled about me marrying a Vulcan."

"Your mother told me that he will... 'come around'," T'Pol explained.

"You are more optimistic about all this than I am," Trip smiled weakly.

* * *

"Charly, Trip has invited us to his place," Cathryn announced as Charles Tucker Jr. returned from his work outside.

"Uh-hu, when are we goin'?"

"Tomorrow. And I hope you're going to behave yourself."

"Well, what do I hav'ta do? Does that Vulcan gal of his have a secret handshake or anything?"

"First of all, she's not a gal, but his wife. And Vulcans have no handshakes at all."

"Jeez, we had this discussion a hundred times. How the hell is she gonna give him a good life, if even shakin' hands is not done. Ya know yaself, that Trip needs a lotta cuddlin' an' smoochin'. I'm worried about ma boy."

"Charles! I'm really getting sick of this! Trip looked marvelous when we spoke. He seems to be happy where he is and whome he is with. And I sure as hell **am **happy that he's down here on Earth, with a wife and a house, rather than living on some damn starship out there, getting shot at. Wait until we get there and find out yourself before you condemn her. Do you read me?"

"Sorry, darlin'. I'm just gett'n darn anal, when it comes to my kids."

"Like all Tucker men, you do."

* * *

Cathryn directed her husband from the landing pad to the house. Having inspected and prepared it, she knew her way around. Father Tucker inwardly admired his son's taste. They soon reached the gates where they were stopped by two burly Vulcans.

"May I inquire, who you are?" Major Setak asked calmly.

"Charles Tucker Jr and Cathryn Tucker," Trip's mother answered with a nod, as Trip had instructed. She handed over her ID card.

"Very well, Lady Cathryn," Setak answered and returned the polite nod together with the card. The strange address prompted a confused stare from Charles. "Commander Tucker is expecting you. Please follow me."

"Mom!" Trip shouted, running out of the house towards his parents. He had just about enough self-restraint to motion Setak to return to his post before he wrapped his mother in a bear hug.

"Damn, boy, ya got hunky," his dad chuckled admiringly and grabbed his son for the trademark Tucker hug. Both men tried to squeeze the air out of each others lungs.

"Been working out?" Charles whispered into his son's ear.

"I'll explain later, when mom's not around," Trip whispered back.

"So where is T'Pol?" Cathryn asked – eager to meet her daughter-in-law.

"She's still at the academy. Her last lecture ends at 1500, so she'll be here in an hour or two. Let's get inside," Trip motioned towards the house.

They sat down with Trip and listened to their son talking about the events of the last months. They learned how their son lost a child he never knew about and how he proposed marriage right in front of the Vulcan High Council. A flashing light on his view screen announced an incoming transmission.

"Gotta message son," Charles Jr. noted.

"Hm, its from Vulcan on a secure channel, must be T'Pau," Trip assessed.

"Who's 'at?" his father asked. "Your mother in law?"

"No, dad. She's the boss of the High Council," Trip explained and pushed the button. The petite face of T'Pau appeared.

"T'Pau hon, how's things?"

"You are not alone," she half asked, half warned about using such intimate address in front of an audience.

"Don't worry, these are my parents. Cathryn and Charles Tucker Jr.," he introduced.

"It is agreeable to meet you. Your son honors you," T'Pau returned in Vulcan-leader-mode.

"Nice ta meet ya, too," Charles Jr returned in a very familiar, but much thicker drawl, amazed how his son flirted unashamedly with the big boss o' Vulcan.

"It is apparent that your colorful language is a paternal trait," T'Pau noted with a hint of teasing.

"Ya damn right, hon, what can I do for ya?"

"Since Admiral V'Kar is away on a deep space mission, Minister Soval suggested that I visit Earth. Do I correctly assume that this was your idea?"

"Damn right, so when's ya gonna come over?" Trip laughed.

"I will leave Vulcan one week from now. The star ship _Ti'Mur_ will transport me to Earth."

"Well, greetings to Captain Vanik then," he chuckled

"You know him?"

"Yeah, we met him once. Isn't exactly a party animal, but he helped rescue Travis and Malcolm with that tractor beam o' his."

"I see. We will meet in 10 days time," she nodded

"Looking forward to it, hon. See ya", Trip drawled as the transmission ended.

His parents looked at him in wide-eyed surprize.

"Trip, don't you know any shame?" his mother stuttered. "You were chatting up that woman?"

Trip started laughing hysterically. "No, mom. Don't worry. T'Pol would take my head off, if I ever chatted up another woman. T'Pau's our adopted daughter."

Now the Tucker elders were just short of fainting. "Your what?" Charles managed to squeak.

"Two days before our wedding we became her step-parents. She accidentally performed some ancient ritual and we became her adoptive parents," Trip explained. "Wasn't planned or anything, but sure as hell, I'm happy about it. After all what happened with Elizabeth," Trip trailed off sadly.

"It's ok, son," Charles Jr. replied and put a soothing hand on his shoulder.

Trip showed his parents the lawn and introduced them to Vivendi and Beryoza, who were having another happy romp on the vast area of grass. Both Tucker parents praised their son's taste in selecting this house. After they settled down in the dining room with another round of coffee, a thud from the front door announced the arrival of T'Pol.

"Good afternoon," she spoke softly and leaned in to kiss her husband, ignoring the audience.

"Darlin', these are my parents - Cathryn and Charles."

"I am honored to meet you," she returned and held out her hand to both of them.

"Well, nice ta meet ya too," his father returned with a puzzled glance. This was not the cold Vulcan greeting he had expected.

"You have not offered your parents the pie?" T'Pol asked, noting the absence of plates on the table.

"Well, we were waiting for you, else dad would've wolfed down everything by now," Trip chuckled

"That means he shares your appetite, Ashayam," she said, touching his shoulder deliberately where the latest bite mark shone, and left for the kitchen.

"Damn, she got some wit," his dad muttered in amazement.

"You sure got a thing for cute Vulcans," his mother teased at the thought of T'Pau and T'Pol.

T'Pol returned from the kitchen and laid out the plates and forks. Shortly after that she brought a big piece of pecan pie. Trip started to slice it and served everyone.

"T'Pau called. She's gonna come for a vacation on Earth," Trip mused as all four tore into their pie.

"Do, I correctly assume, that this was your idea?" T'Pol asked. All 3 Tuckers erupted in laughter, causing T'Pol to raise the 'puzzled brow'.

"That's exactly what that cute gal said ta him, too," Charles Jr. explained

"Great minds think alike," T'Pol deadpanned with her giggle brow raised and continued with her pie, stunning Charles into wide eyed amazement at that blatantly un-Vulcan exchange of wits.

* * *

After the pie, the two Tucker men left for the beach while the ladies cleaned up the table and went for a womanly smalltalk in the kitchen.

"Son, what's that finger crossing ya do all the time. That some sorta secret handshake?"

"No, dad, that's a Vulcan kiss. On Vulcan, you'd probably be shot at if you plant a wet one on your wife in public, but the finger kiss is acceptable."

"So, ya two were neckin' all the time, Vulcan style, while ya mom and I didn' realize a damn thing?", he laughed as the two walked towards the little forest.

"I'll be honest with ya, son. I see that ya look happy, but I know how ya were as a kid an' I know, ya need a lot of attention. Vulcans aren't exactly known for that."

"Well, dad, you've seen yourself, that she's kissing me, we're cuddling a lot too, just not in blatant view of everybody. If we'd been alone, those Vulcan kisses would've been human ones. She's just as sensitive as a human wife. Vulcans just don't like being watched when making out," Trip explained as they arrived on the beach clearing.

"I'll be damned son, that's a hoot. Own beach 'n everything. What ya buildin'?", Charles exhaled.

"Russian Banya, just like the one grandad Chuck had. It's almost complete, just some welding left inside. Gimme a hand?" Trip asked as ye yanked his shirt off.

"Damn son, what's that on your shoulder ?"

"Bite marks, dad. Vulcan females have a habit of... biting when they ... go off," Trip explained with a blush. "Just don't tell T'Pol that we had this conversation. Vulcans don't talk about that, but I want you to understand some things."

"Well by the looks o' things they're either permanent or she's been going off a lot lately."

"Well, in case you worried that she'd be frigid. Worry no more, dad," Trip chuckled as he started the welding on the water container.

"You're well catered for if ya shoulders are anything ta go by," his dad sniggered.

Father and son, both accomplished engineers, worked silently for a while, until the container was completed.

"Well, all we need is rocks then," Trip announced.

"There's enough of 'em out there."

"Lets go."

"So, son, what was that workin' out stuff ya wanted ta explain. You've become quite the hunk," Charles Jr. probed.

"Well, sometimes this or next year, she'll get her pon-farr. That's the Vulcan period, sort of. Only they don't get moody. They go all swivel eyed and frigging horny for a week," Trip explained, still in disbelief he had this conversation with his father. _If that doesn't get him 'round, he'll never get the clue, _he though.

"Sounds crazy, sorta," the elder Tucker groaned as they made their way back, each carrying two hands full of rocks.

"It is. She'll jump my bones like 15 to 20 times every day and she won't be nice about it. It's a Vulcan thing. They only ovulate every 7 years, so when's time, they make sure they get well laid. That's why I've been working out. When that wife of mine get's horny, I'm gonna need a lot of stamina."

Charles Jr stopped dead in his tracks. "So that hot gal o' yours will bang ya brains out for a week flat? And you're complainin' ?" he asked with a wide grin.

"Never said I do, dad," Trip laughed.

Seeing that pretty much all his misconceptions had been torn to pieces, Charles Jr. finally made his peace with his son's marriage and finally felt happy that Trip had found a better half, who seemed to give him all he needed. The two started shuttling rocks from the cliff-side into the mesh that Trip had welded onto the oven.

* * *

"Engineers!", Cathryn exhaled in mock indignation seeing her husband and son, both without shirt, carrying a bunch of rocks to the shed.

"Do you require assistance?" T'Pol asked as the two women crossed the clearing toward their respective husbands.

"Well not with that, but if you want, you could get us some fire wood. Dead branches from the forest would be nice, about arms thickness," Trip volleyed

"Will do," Cathryn answered and the two women left for the forest

"Seem to get along quite well, the two," Charles Jr. noticed.

"Well, once you know her, it's hard **not** to get along well with her. Problem for most people is, that they just don't know enough about Vulcans."

"Well guess you do, considerin' that you've adopted their leader. But I gotta hand it to ya boy, they both are seriously gorgeous," Charles replied.

"Well, I got your taste in women then, dad," Trip laughed.

* * *

The ladies brought a formidable heap of dry wood that Trip started to cut into short pieces using a laser. He stacked them inside, while T'Pol was talking to his parents.

"Trip, hon, its late and our transport will be here soon," Cathryn noted a while later.

"Yeah, it was nice of you to drop by," he said, hugging each parent in turn. "Darlin' will you take them to the landing spot? I need a few minutes to finish here and I'll be back, too."

"I shall do so. Please follow me," T'Pol indicated to his parents, shooting her husband the 'curious brow' before she left.

Trip finished cutting the last few branches and stacked the wood into a formidable heap inside. Taking a hand full of the log stubs, he piled them into the oven and ignited them with the laser. Taking a bucket he went down to the lake and started hauling water until he had filled up the tank inside. With his preparations complete, he left for the house, with a mischievous grin.

* * *

"Your parents have left," T'Pol informed as he returned to the house.

"Well, guess my dad had all his little worries cured," Trip grinned, while rummaging around in a cupboard, retrieving an unmarked tub.

"He was visibly more content with our marriage, when he left. May I inquire, what you are doing?"

"Preparing a nice little wellness session with my wife," he explained ominously. "Get us four towels from the bathroom, ok?"

"As you wish," she answered.

When T'Pol returned, she was clad in her silk robe, carrying a batch of towels and his blue satin robe.

"Good thinking darlin," he said, while shedding his clothes.

As the two walked hand in hand towards the forest, they conversed about the meeting with the parents. T'Pol and Cathryn had obviously gotten along very well. He also told her how his father had been worried about him not getting as much cuddling time as necessary and they expressed mutual amazement about how wrong he had gotten that. Stepping into the dressing room, T'Pol noticed the pleasurable heat of the oven from the adjacent room. As soon as she stepped out of the robe, her hungry husband made sure that she was properly kissed and well groped, painting a greenish blush all over her face.

"It is not customary for a Vulcan to experience these sensations. However I concede they are most agreeable," she panted the Vulcan version of 'I like that a lot.'

"There's more 'sensations' waiting in there," he chuckled, indicating the adjacent room with his thumb.

T'Pol laid out a towel on the bench as her husband had demonstrated and made herself comfortable, laying on her tummy. She watched Trip stacking up some more wood in the oven as the first batch had almost burned down already. She was ogling him all over, enjoying the sight of that naked human of hers, who had grown some nice muscle.

"That's some stuff I got from the Vulcan compound. They say its good for your skin," he explained softly, as he approached his wife with the unmarked tub. Scooping up some of the lotion with two fingers, he started to rub it on her shoulders and her back, causing her to sigh in content. As he approached her buttocks, he made sure to apply the lotion **very thoroughly**, while his mate enjoyed the ministrations with closed eyes and soft grunts of pleasure. Continuing with her thighs, he gently stroked them, now and then stealing a slight brush of a finger over pleasure central, triggering soft squeals of excitement from her. After having completed her feet - she obviously liked it a lot when he gently massaged her toes - he softly asked her to turn around, so the cosmetic work could be continued on the front side of his delicious wife.

Trip was already sweating profoundly from the immense heat of the oven, while his way more heat resistant wife showed merely some beads of sweat on her forehead. Gingerly he rubbed the lotion into her skin, paying extra attention to her inner thighs again and applied a soft grope to pleasure central, causing a gasp and a darker shade of green on her face.

Slowly stroking her abdomen and stomach, he approached the two firm towering breasts of his Vulcan dream girl and sensually rubbed them until not an inch had been without exposure to the cosmetic substance. Breathing heavily, accompanied by increasingly loud grunts of excitement, she was approaching the state of incoherence that T'Pau had warned him about. It announced the need for more substantial consummation action.

Trip went over to the container scooping up some flavored water and slowly tossed it on the hot stones, causing the room to steam up in an immense wave of heat, that even T'Pol could not take without sweating. The green-blushed Vulcan stared wide eyed at her mate, who was very ready for what she needed now, if that massive erection was anything to go by. She couldn't think coherently enough to scold him for letting her stew in that wash of immense emotions and overpowering need. But her ordeal was short lived has he lifted her up easily and settled her down on the desired impalement, while she clung to him with her arms around his neck and her legs around his body. Supporting her with both hands firmly planted on her butt cheeks, he started to, gently, lift and drop her on that favorite pole of hers. As always in a state of such arousal, she was completely incoherent by now. Her articulation skills were reduced to grunts and squeals of pleasure, her eyes unfocused. As the sweaty pair continued to work each other up in a perfect rhythm of hot passion, engulfed in the hot steam of water, she started licking his shoulder, claiming the flesh that she would dig her teeth in, once the climax approached.

A familiar howl alarmed Trip to brace for the short sting of pain as his wife claimed her territory with a bite, while he injected her with his juice of love.

Trembling from the residue of yet another mighty orgasm, she still clung to her sweat soaked mate, waiting for coherent thoughts to return. His, now limp, organ slipped out of pleasure central, while he continued to hold his mate, gently rocking and soothing her as she recovered from the onslaught of fierce sensations. It took several minutes before she came down again, still heavily panting.

"We shall... repeat this experience... frequently," she wheezed. "The temperature is most conductive to... mating."

"We didn't... mate," he teased.

"What is our next course of action?"

"Come on, I'll show you," he said as he took his naked wife outside and walked towards the lake.

"I cannot swim," she warned.

"Don't need to."

He lead her into the water, aware of her tentativeness and therefore not letting go of her hand. When the water reached waist level, she let out a gasp at feeling the cool water wash over the heated flesh of pleasure central. Stopping, he directed her to squat down, so that only their head remained above the water line. After they stood up, they slowly continued, until the water reached shoulder level still holding their hands. He drew her close and stroked his hands all over her body, to make sure, all sweat and residue of lotion was washed off his mate's skin.

After cooling themselves down, they returned to the shed and gathered the towels into a bag. Trip made sure, that the oven was secured and tilted the window, so that the moisture and residue of steam could dry out over night. Naked as jaybirds, with the robes hanging over their shoulders, they walked back home to get settled for the night. Snuggling up to each other, T'Pol had one last request, that she whispered softly.

"Trip, will you teach me to swim?"


	10. The Betazed Mission

**18. The Betazed Mission**

_A/N: The battle's begun, but not (yet) for our favorite couple and their distinguished guest. They are facing a different, rather unexpected challenge... How hard can it be? _

_A very big thumbs up to __**aadarshinah, **__who corrected the gazillion of spelling and grammatical errors, which disgraced the original version of the chapter. Thank you so much :-)_

"Report!" Archer barked as he stumbled out of the turbo lift, struggling to stay on his feet as the _Enterprise _was rocked by enemy fire.

"Several Betazoid cruisers are under attack by two Romulan warbirds," Shran explained, vacating the big chair. "As soon as we came into scanner range, one of them attacked us."

"Damage report!"

"Minor damage so far: engineering reported several small plasma fires, but we are holding up."

"Travis, keep us at this distance, don't let them come closer," Archer instructed. "Looks like their disruptors aren't very effective at this long range."

"Aye, Captain."

"Lt. Reed, Weapon status."

"All systems green Captain, but we'll have the same problem that they have, if not worse. Even with my best shot, all I can hope for is a few dents in their hull at this distance."

"Do you have a proposal?"

"I do, Sir. It appears as if they are not trying to destroy us. I suppose they are merely keeping us busy, so the other warbird can finish off the Betazoids. What they'll do after that is anybody's guess. I would suggest we get that one out of the way. One-on-one is definitely better than facing both of them at once."

"Good," Archer replied. "Travis, get us into weapons range. Lieutenant, lay down some fire with the cannons and send them two torpedoes."

"Aye, Sir!" Malcolm and Travis answered in unison.

As soon as Travis had maneuvered them into a more favorable battle position, Malcolm fired both cannons. Before he could even fire the first torpedo, however, a cascading series of explosions rocked the Romulan vessel, started by what looked like a rather mediocre hit by phaser fire. _Enterprise_ was rocked by impacting debris when the Romulan attacker disintegrated completely.

"Bloody hell," Malcolm muttered in a mixture of surprise and smugness.

"What was that?" Shran asked.

"Looks like that's what his buddy wants to know as well," Malcolm answered, pointing to the view screen, which showed the rapid approach of the second warbird.

"Whatever the hell you just did, do it again," Archer instructed Malcolm.

"I'll try, Sir"

Unfortunately the second warbird was hardly rocked by the cannon fire. No explosions and, therefore, no disintegrating warbird could be seen.

"Looks like we have to do it the usual way," Shran analyzed deadpan and went to assist Malcolm at the weapons console.

"You operate the torpedoes, Lieutenant, I'll take care of the cannons," he instructed as he joined Malcolm at the tactical station.

"Aye, Sir."

"Disruptor hit to hull plating," Shran reported. "Plating at 70%."

"Target their disruptors," Archer ordered and both Shran and Malcolm complied.

"One disruptor offline," Malcolm exclaimed.

"Two to go," Shran added.

"Evasive maneuvers," Archer barked as the next round of disruptor hits rocked the ship.

"Hull plating at 20%, second disruptor offline," Malcolm summarized as he retaliated the latest damage with a direct torpedo hit.

"Hull breach on E-deck," Hoshi reported.

"Evacuate the section and establish a damage report," Archer ordered.

"They're dead in the water, sir," came Malcolm's cool report after Shran had disabled the last of the Romulan's disruptor banks.

"Hail them," the Captain told Hoshi.

"Incoming answer – audio only," she replied after about a minute of trying to hail the attacker.

"I am Captain Jonathan Archer of the Earth star ship _Enterprise._ We are here following an emergency call of the government of Betazed. You have committed an unprovoked act of aggression against Betazed and Earth ships. We expect you to stand down and prepare to be boarded."

"The Romulan Star Empire will never stand down," came a dark male voice in return without introducing himself.

Moments later _Enterprise_ was rocked by a massive nearby explosion as the warbird exploded in a blinding fireball. Pieces of debris smashed into _Enterprise_'s hull, causing even more damage.

"What the hell was that?" Malcolm asked.

"A self-destruct system," Archer theorized sarcastically. "They obviously didn't **want** to be boarded."

"We're being hailed Sir," Hoshi reported.

"On screen."

The serene face of a dark haired female appeared. She looked almost human, with the exception of her completely black irises; she was of unbelievable beauty.

"Holy cow," Travis muttered in admiration.

"I am Princess Roxana of the Third House of Betazed, Captain of the battle cruiser _El'nar_. We are thankful that you arrived in time to save us from our tormentors. All of Betazed owes you a debt of gratitude."

"I am Captain Jonathan Archer of the Earth star ship _Enterprise_. It is our honor to be of help."

"Our government would like to meet our saviors. Do you have means to transport a delegation to the surface?"

"We have, Princess Roxana."

"Then please travel to these coordinates," she explained, while transmitting the coordinates."I shall await you there."

"Very well, we'll meet you there."

"Prepare the shuttlepod, Travis," Archer ordered with a smile and watched Travis' eagerness to comply.

X X X

Trip and T'Pol were silently enjoying a naked swim in the lake after another – literally steamy – session in the _Banya_. Due to her excellent coordination skills, T'Pol had learned to swim in no time and her initial fear of water was exchanged for what passes on Vulcan as enthusiasm for this activity, usually preceded by an elaborate human wellness ritual.

"I think, we should teach the lil' one to swim as well," Trip broke the silence as both glided along slowly. "I'm sure she'll like it."

"Despite having developed a certain... closeness, I do doubt that T'Pau would disrobe in your or my presence," T'Pol retorted with an elevated brow.

"That's what swimsuits have been invented for, darlin'," he answered with a chuckle. Both fell silent and T'Pol noticed the telltale signs of a Tucker in deep thought.

"So what's the Vulcans take on being naked anyways," Trip asked after a while. "You seem rather fond of skinny dipping and lying in the sun completely naked. Hell, you even bounced around topless, when we built the _Banya_."

"I did not... bounce," she answered in mock indignation. "You are my mate and we are in a strictly private setting. Since we frequently engage in activities that require a disrobed condition, it would be illogical to be troubled by it. Being exposed to others except ones mate or parents, however, is an extremely distressing experience for a Vulcan. Even in unavoidable situations, like medical examinations it is exceedingly taxing."

"That bad?"

"When our worlds were still in conflict, Andorians routinely used forced exposure as a means of torture."

"Guess that figures," Trip mused. "Seeing that you consider touching and your age an intimate topic. Being naked in front of strangers must be sheer hell."

"Are humans not troubled by it?"

"Depends. Some are, some aren't, I for one have no real problem with it. I wouldn't roam the city naked," Trip explained with a snicker. "But I wouldn't really be troubled if someone walked in on me in the shower or anything."

Both fell silent again as they made their way back to the beach.

As they both walked back to the house, Trip noticed a slight fidgeting. "Something wrong?"

"I experience erratic intrusions of emotions that are not mine and they appear to be not yours, either."

"Could it be that the maternal bond starts kicking in, that Torok told you about?"

"It may well be and appears to be the most logic explanation. If so, however, T'Pau appears to be in a less than optimal condition."

"What's wrong?" Trip asked, slightly panicking. Worry was painted all over his features.

"The feelings are faint and unsteady, but I notice a great sense of urgency, exhaustion and impatience."

"Sounds like someone who's tired and can't get where she's going fast enough. Yep, must be the lil' one," Trip mused.

X X X

Trip sat in his office on Jupiter station. During his leave, right after arriving on Earth, Solan and his engineering team had arrived and started to assemble the replica of Earth's Warp 5 engine, which Trip had discovered on his visit to Vulcan. He was now waiting for Solan and their first morning briefing.

The door chime announced the Vulcan's arrival.

"Come."

"Good morning," Solan greeted as he entered. The use of a human greeting showed his experience with working around humans.

"Good morning, Solan, have a seat. Tea?"

"Very well," the tall Vulcan nodded.

Setting down two cups of tea, Trip started his introduction. "First of all. As you know, my wife and I are still in the process of bonding. Jupiter station is pushing the limit as to how far I can be from her at the moment, so especially towards the end of the shift, I might zone out. I take it your people know what to do in that case?"

"All of my engineers are bonded themselves. They will immediately recognize the symptoms and know how to act accordingly."

"Very well. So how's the work going?"

"If no major disruptions present themselves, the assembly of the engine will be finished within the month. We expect the final assembly phase of _Columbia _to start less than 4 weeks from now."

"That's good news. How are things working out with the human team?"

"I know many of the human engineers from my time as an adviser," Solan's baritone filled the room. "I have selected my engineers very carefully to make sure that I only brought those who are experienced and open-minded enough to work with human colleagues effectively. There are no tensions or problems that I know of."

"I like the sound of that," Trip smiled as he sifted through the reports on his PADD.

"T'Kir, is that by any chance the lady who helped us during the demonstration back on Vulcan?" Trip asked after a while, pointing to one of the reports.

"Yes, she is a very capable engineer."

"That she is, by the looks of things," Trip answered admiringly. "I would like to appoint her liaison officer with Starfleet university, if you are not opposed."

"It is a logical proposal. She is most competent and it would spare me the frequent travels to Earth needed to speak with the designers, enabling me to fulfill my obligations as a team leader more effectively," Solan agreed.

"Fine, I think that'll be all for today," Trip smiled and Solan left the office.

The chime of an incoming message tore him from his thoughts.

"Hi there, gorgeous," Trip smiled as T'Pol's face appeared on the screen.

"I called to inquire if your condition is agreeable," T'Pol explained. "Since it is your first day at Jupiter station, I wanted to be sure that the distance does not trouble you."

Knowing exactly, what she really meant to say, Trip answered, still smiling. "Yeah, miss you, too, darlin'. Guess we both got a little bit too comfortable with being around each other all day."

"Is it bothering you too severely?" she asked, not even trying to rebuff his assessment.

"Quite a bit, but we have to start getting used to it. How about you?"

"I, too feel discomfort due to the separation. It is unusual to be this far apart in the first year of marriage. It is... taxing. Please make sure that you do not extend the time of your absence unnecessarily."

"Don't worry, I'll leave as soon as the shift is up. Knowing that we're still bonding, I'm pretty sure that Solan will boot me off the station personally, if I stay just a minute too long," he answered with a chuckle.

"That is reassuring to know," T'Pol retorted with a hint of tease. "T'Pau's emotional suggestions are getting stronger and clearer rapidly. It leads me to believe that she might arrive earlier than anticipated. My last seminar is finished, so I shall go to the city to prepare for her arrival."

"Like the sound of that," he smiled. "See you in the evening darlin'."

"I shall await you," she nodded and the transmission ended.

X X X

T'Pol heard the soft snorting of Vivendi and Beryoza in the backyard. It was their way of light protest against the fact that they had to leave the green stuff for the stable. But their owner was not open to negotiation as more than the customary 8 hours in the warm summer sun was a danger to their health, There wasn't much shadow to seek shelter in.

The young Vulcan stood behind the curtains of the dining room window, enjoying the view of her mate's shirtless and very well-built frame. The workout regime that he had followed ever since their wedding most obviously had a very agreeable effect on his appearance.

Her brooding was interrupted by the door chime. Opening the entrance, she looked into the faces of Major Setak and T'Pau, who, true to her earlier suspicion, was almost a day early. Motioning the Major to return to his post, she indicated T'Pau to enter.

"It is agreeable to see you, mother," T'Pau greeted with the customary V-salute.

Momentarily startled by the unexpected address, T'Pol answered. "It is agreeable to see you, as well."

Before they could continue their conversation, they heard the approaching footsteps of a man with a surprise waiting for him.

"Darlin'? I thought I heard...," Trip stopped dead in his tracks, wide-eyed, but not quite as wide-eyed as T'Pau, when she noticed his state of undress.

With two quick steps T'Pol raced to a nearby chair and tossed him a shirt.

"Sorry fer that," Trip mumbled while he quickly restored modesty, before approaching their visitor. "Hi there, hon," he exclaimed enthusiastically, before noticing the dark rings under T'Pau's eyes and her slightly slumped posture. Stopping his approach, he looked at T'Pau, then his wife and then T'Pau again.

T'Pau shot T'Pol a quizzing look that was returned by a nod. Wordlessly the young leader bridged the distance between herself and Trip and slowly, wordlessly slung her arms around his neck, resting her head on his chest with a slight sigh. That surely wasn't part of Surak's teachings.

Stunned by this completely unexpected behavior, it took T'Pol's motioning him to return the gesture, before he did so. While T'Pol excused herself to the kitchen to prepare tea, Trip slowly rocked T'Pau, who remained plastered to his chest.

"That stuff was really getting to ya, wasn't it?"

T'Pau nodded, before she spoke softly. "Since Minister Soval arrived, the burden has been lessened considerably, but the weeks between his arrival and your departure have been... most taxing."

"Let's sit down," Trip whispered as T'Pol arrived with a tray, carrying the tea.

"We didn't expect you before tomorrow," T'Pol inquired, once the three had settled down.

"I asked Captain Vanik to advance to the highest safe speed of travel," she answered, prompting Trip to laugh softly.

"So you asked him to give 'er the beans, so you'd arrive as quickly as possible," Trip stated and was answered by a nod, even though she had only guessed the meaning of his colorful metaphor.

"We're glad you're here," he smiled and patted the back of her hand.

"I hope my presence here will not be too disruptive," T'Pau answered.

"You are not disruptive. Your father was awaiting your arrival most impatiently. Although he must attend to his duties on Jupiter station, he shall spend as much time as possible here. Despite the fact that we only recently returned to duty, Admiral Gardner granted me leave of absence for the entire time of your visit."

A small nod of T'Pau signaled her acquiescence to T'Pol's assurance.

"Now," Trip continued after they had finished their tea in silence. "T'Pol, why don't you take the lil' one to the meditation room, looks like she could use a bit of that. Meanwhile, I'll play engineer on the beach.

"Very well," T'Pol nodded and motioned T'Pau to follow her.

X X X

"May I ask for the motives behind your unusual gesture towards your father?" T'Pol inquired on their way to the meditation room.

"It was an impulse," T'Pau explained almost apologetically. "Father once performed it with me, when I was rescued after the shuttle accident. It had a strong calming and almost meditative effect on me. I fail however to explain why. I was sure that father would not object, I was not so sure of your approval."

"Do not concern yourself," T'Pol assured. "Close contact with Trip has the same effect on me and, since our mind meld, recently started to have its expected effect on me as well, it is no threat to our bond. Your change in addressing me, indicates that the same is true for you."

"Indeed," T'Pau agreed as the two young Vulcans sat down for a much needed joint meditation.

"Why does father refer to me as 'little one'? Using our height to distinguish us is illogical, as we are nearly the same height," T'Pau inquired, while T'Pol arranged and lit the candles.

"It is a human diminutive, usually used to affectionately refer to a child or younger sibling, even when it physically outgrew one or both parents."

Satisfied with her maternal _En'ahr'at'_s explanation, T'Pau started her meditation, shortly after, followed by T'Pol.

X X X

A few hours after leaving his two ladies to meditate, Trip inspected the day's work. Never quite satisfied with the comfort level of his _Banya_, he had installed a small stasis unit and a communication view screen in the changing room.

Straddling one of the benches with a beer in one hand and a PADD in the other, he double checked the newly installed circuitry of the view screen. He was startled out of his thinking by a familiar voice.

"You were correct, mother, he did lose track of time," T'Pau spoke with an elevated brow.

Trip swung around and ejected the latest swig of beer through his nose. "Holy, moly," he exclaimed wide-eyed, after the coughing had subsided. "Now, **you** are a picture, hon!"

T'Pau regarded his somewhat explosive reaction with what must be the Vulcan equivalent of a shy look. "I take it you approve of my appearance?" T'Pau asked.

"That's the understatement of the century," Trip answered admiringly. T'Pau was wearing one of T'Pol's tight fitting stretch pants and one of her shirts. "It's a damn sin to hide that sort of beauty in one of those cumbersome robes o' yours."

A slight blush crept up her face in light of this praise.

"Maybe you wish to accompany me to some Earth shops tomorrow," T'Pol offered.

"That would be agreeable."

"We shall dine now," T'Pol offered. "We have brought the evening meal here."

X X X

"What is the purpose of this structure?" T'Pau asked as T'Pol showed her the _Banya_ after their joint meal. Trip had stayed back on the beach.

"It is used for an elaborate Human ritual that strengthens ones health and improves ones appearance," T'Pol explained as they entered the main chamber.

"The front room is used to disrobe, before entering the main chamber," she continued, prompting a wide-eyed look from T'Pau. "These crude rocks are heated by burning wood or carbon. Once the air is sufficiently heated, water is poured over the hot rocks to fill the room with vapor to enhance the effect. The effects of this procedure include a cleansing effect on the skin and improved resilience against viral diseases. As I have learned, it works almost as well for Vulcans as it does for Humans."

T'Pau regarded her, still in disbelief. "Humans perform joint rituals without clothing?"

"Many humans do not share our inhibitions against the practice. Others prefer to perform such rituals with a minimum of clothing. Since I expected you to be uncomfortable with the thought of exposing yourself, I took the liberty of buying such clothing for all of us, should you wish to join us in the practice of the steam bath or swimming."

"Very well," T'Pau answered with a hint of relief. "What is it like... to swim?"

"It was very uncomfortable at first, but I soon came to appreciate it as a most agreeable activity."

"I would like to try swimming during my stay."

"Very well, T'Pol answered. "I shall start to instruct you tomorrow, when we return from the city."

"What is father doing?" T'Pau asked when they came back out of the _Banya_. She saw Trip propped up on a towel on the beach, staring into the distance holding a flask of the strange substance he had drunk earlier.

"It's his form of meditation. Considering that humans are not naturally drawn to meditate, it is unexpectedly effective. I sometimes join him and often have no need for traditional meditation afterward."

"Is the beverage part of the ritual?"

"Fortunately not," T'Pol explained. "It doesn't quite agree with me."

"Meaning."

"It contains a substance called ethanol. It is intoxicating and seems to have a stronger effect on me than it has on Trip. Also the taste leaves something to be desired."

"Would father object, when I join him?"

"No, he will most likely find it most agreeable. I have no objection myself. Feel free to join him, while I return to the house."

T'Pau slowly approached and laid down beside him. Slinging an arm around his body, she lowered her head to his chest and joined him in this very unconventional form of meditation.

A happy sigh of her _En'ahr'at_ signaled that he indeed did not object to the idea of having company.

X X X

Captain Archer appeared furious. "Ensign, we were on the surface as guests of the Betazoids. I know they were more than hospitable, but was it really necessary to go **that** far?"

"I'm sorry Sir," Travis uttered apologetically. "I got carried away. I will accept any disciplinary action that you or Starfleet see fit."

"Don't worry about being punished," Archer answered slightly softening. "There's no law but basic decency that you have broken and, as I recall, you already accepted the resulting consequences, but trust me, the diplomatic corps will call for your head."

"I understand, Sir."

"Dismissed. Lay a course back to Earth at maximum warp."

"Aye, Sir."

X X X

The last days had been a bliss for Trip and his small family. After a shopping trip with T'Pol, T'Pau now was in possession of several articles of Earth clothing – and not of the drab variety either. Before presenting herself to Trip for the first time, she had made sure that he wasn't drinking anything, to prevent more upsets like on the day of her arrival. Her choice of wardrobe was met with even more enthusiastic approval than last time.

Just like with T'Pol, learning to swim was not a really difficult task for T'Pau and she had taken a liking to it almost immediately. Trip's theory of T'Pau having inherited T'Pol's curiosity was proven, when she admitted to T'Pol that she – late at night – had sampled the disrobed variety of the practice and found it most agreeable, but expressed doubts about such activity in the presence of her adopted parents. T'Pol had assured her to give her the necessary privacy to practice that new-found activity without the danger of either Trip or herself accidentally appearing on the scene. She conveniently omitted the fact that this in turn gave her and her mate their own privacy for some other – more substantial – activity, which likewise didn't require any clothing.

T'Pau disappeared into the _Banya_'s changing room to change out of her wet swimsuit after another swim, while Trip – just back from Jupiter station – was engaged in his unique way of meditation. T'Pol was back in the house, preparing the evening meal.

She was nearing completion of the task and started to load the dishes in the transport container – ready to bring them to the beach – when a transmission chime disrupted her preparation. It was Major Setak. "Lady T'Pol. I regret the interruption – the human Captain Jonathan Archer wishes to see you and your husband," the burly guardsman announced and T'Pol noticed with satisfaction that the Major adhered to her wish, not to refer to Trip as her mate to prevent any discomfort. The fact that Trip wasn't around was both unknown and irrelevant to the Major.

"Let him pass, Major. He may enter without being escorted."

"As you wish, Lady T'Pol."

T'Pol opened the main entrance and awaited the arrival of her former Captain.

"It is agreeable to see you, Captain," she greeted, once he climbed the stairs.

"Nice to see you, too, T'Pol." Archer smiled. "I'm sorry about not calling ahead, we've just arrived in orbit."

"Do not concern yourself. Trip will appreciate your visit, even without prior notice."

"I hope so," he answered smilingly.

After finishing her preparation, T'Pol motioned Archer to follow her. As they were crossing the meadow, where Vivendi and Beryoza were engaged in their favorite pastime – grazing and chasing each other – Archer took in the idyllic view. _This is not a temporary arrangement. _Archer thought with a pang of disappointment.

Shortly before leaving the small forest behind, Archer stopped dead in his tracks. "T'Pol," he whispered.

"Captain?" she asked back in a lowered voice, inwardly chastising herself for not having warned Trip and T'Pau earlier and thus preventing the young woman from being seen in a situation that was unbecoming for someone in her position by an outsider .

"Do I see my former Chief Engineer with the leader of the High Command cuddling up to him?"

T'Pol sent a strong nudge through the bond, hoping it would reach either Trip or T'Pau, while she answered the Captains question. "It's the leader of the High Council, Captain. Your vision, however, is unimpaired."

Shaking his head, Archer resumed to follow T'Pol onto the beach. He had some questions.

Her mental nudge was strong enough to tickle the strong emphatic senses of T'Pau who made her father aware of the approaching guest. Both of them disentangled hurriedly and faced the visitor.

"Captain," Trip greeted as he regained his wits and wrapped Jon in a friendly hug.

"It is agreeable to see you again, Captain Archer."

"Nice to meet you again, too, Minister," Jon answered, pretending to have seen nothing out of the ordinary.

The four of them ate in silence. T'Pol could sense T'Pau's uneasiness about being seen by someone outside her family in rather skimpy and tight fitting earth clothing. As soon as the meal was finished, she set out to get T'Pau out of the hot zone.

"T'Pau, please assist me in returning the dishes. Your father wishes to speak to Captain Archer in private."

Trip got the clue and motioned a dumbstruck Archer to follow him and walked towards the _Banya_.

"I apologize," T'Pol spoke, as soon as they were out of the human's earshot. "I warned you too late, so Captain Archer saw you and your father in contact."

"Do not concern yourself. I know Captain Archer as a trustworthy man, he will not make his observation known to others."

"I will nonetheless be more cautious that there will not be any more unannounced visitors during your stay."

"Agreed."

X X X

"Father?" Archer stuttered as soon as they were inside the changing room.

Trip chucked him a beer from the recently installed stasis unit. "I'll explain Cap'n. Bit of a long story."

"You built yourself a sauna?" the Captain changed the topic, peering into the main chamber.

"Russian _Banya_, but its almost the same. Got a bit of time for some heat?"

"Why not, its been ages since I was in one."

"Let me fire it up," Trip explained and went to prepare the oven.

X X X

"So, care to enlighten me?" Archer asked as he sat across the room from Trip, both swigging a cool beer in the building heat of the main chamber.

"When T'Pau performed those mind melds to prove our bond, she performed some ancient adoption ritual without knowing. That way we became her step-parents, Surak-style."

"You seem to take the job rather seriously, by the looks of it," Archer smirked.

"It's not only some administrative act, like a human adoption. T'Pol even developed a maternal bond with her. Actually bits of T'Pol's and my mind were imprinted on hers, that's why she suddenly jokes with the best of them and I'm sure she's got some of T'Pol's curiosity. Looks like she also developed a knack for cuddlin'," Trip explained sheepishly.

"So that mind meld made her have some of your traits."

"Exactly, and you're right, I take that 'job' very seriously. In fact, I love her to bits."

"But don't you think you're overdoing it? She's still a Vulcan, and not just any Vulcan, so cuddling on the beach...?" Archer asked slightly bemused.

"Did you see what she was wearing?"

"Who could have missed that? I almost lost it," Archer laughed. "She looks like teenage jail bait."

"She chose that herself. And she **is **a teenager. If she'd be human, she'd be no more than 16."

"What? She looks young, but I would have thought she's about T'Pol's age. I spent quite some time with her in the Forge, she never struck me as an adolescent. Maybe a tad reckless and there were clearly no hairdressers in the Forge, but she never really made an immature impression on me."

"That's because she never was allowed to be a youth. You've met that Syrran fella. He and his Syrranites raised her ever since she lost both parents as a toddler. They never allowed her a proper childhood or adolescence. I do allow her to make up for it when no one's around to see it and she's loving every second of it. Do me a favor Cap'n, don' tell anyone. She's probably already in an emergency meditation with T'Pol because you saw her."

"Syrran? That guy was a lunatic. I wouldn't have trusted him to raise a dog. Figures that Surak's katra led me to the cave immediately, while this guy roamed the desert for years without finding it. Guess Surak didn't care much for a self-appointed messiah," Archer chuckled. "And don't worry, I'll not say a word," he added with an honest smile.

"Well, even High Priest Torok said that this guy and his people made a monkey's breakfast of her upbringing, so that should tell you something."

"Sure does. I must admit, you look happy, Trip."

"Ya, I am. After all the stuff that happened... Lorian... Lizzy. Hell, however inadvertent that was, I'm really happy that it happened."

"I can see that," Archer smiled bitterly. "There goes my plan to lure you and T'Pol back to _Enterprise_.

"Fat chance, Jon. I've got a family now and I'm sick of being shot at by everybody and his dog. I'll still go out there and test drive ships and if the worst happens and we have to go to another war, we'll both be there. But for anything else, I'll be happy to nail ships together and run the occasional diplomatic errand for Gardner."

"I doubt that. The diplomatic corps is about to implode," Archer sighed.

"How come?"

"When we arrived at Betazed, we found two Romulan warbirds tearing into the Betazoid fleet. We destroyed one and disabled the second. We took quite a beating."

"Casualties?"

"Two on E deck," the Captain sighed.

"Damn!"

"As a sign of gratitude, they allowed us to stay on the surface for a couple of days. Travis enjoyed the hospitality a tad too much and befriended and then took a roll in the hay with some Princess Roxana of the Third House."

"Ouch!"

"The Betazoids didn't wanna make an incident out of it, but their traditions demanded that the two marry and Travis blurted out his agreement immediately."

"Well, he finally had a good punch line after all," Trip chuckled.

"Yeah, with the Betazoids eager to join the Coalition, they're hell bent on making an intergalactic event out of it. They are sending out invitations to all coalition species' heads of government."

"To a… Betazoid wedding?" Trip asked warily.

"Yep, the naked variety. It took us a lot of diplomatic effort to get the Betazoids to accept **any** Earth diplomat, rather than the President. You can imagine now, what's going on amongst Earth's diplomats."

"Nobody's too eager to go," Trip continued before slapping his forehead. "Shit!"

"Trip?"

"Guess, which leader get's the same invitation?"

"They'll just declare it logical and go through with it," Archer offered.

"Jon, you have no idea. They consider telling their age an intimate act, what do you think it'll mean for a Vulcan to run around naked in front of a hundred or more people?"

"That bad?"

"Worse," Trip sighed and buried his face in his palms. "Just as we thought we got her to relax..."

The mood was now properly spoiled and the two men dipped into the lake to cool off, before returning to the _Banya_ to redress. Archer soon made his exit after they had returned to the house.

X X X

"You appear troubled," T'Pol asked and embraced him.

"Where's the lil' one?"

"She is meditating. The Captain's unannounced visit has unsettled her slightly."

"Looks like she'll need a lot more than that soon," he sighed, before sitting down and relaying the Captain's news.

T'Pol looked at him in shock after he had finished. "She'll find it... exceedingly taxing to fulfill this duty."

"Try impossible, darlin'."

"It might be of help, if we accompany her. Didn't Admiral Gardner plan to send us on diplomatic missions?" T'Pol offered.

"Your theory has two flaws, darlin'. First of all, I don't think you'll find it any easier to let 'em hang out in public than she does and secondly, she's as scared of us in that respect as of anyone else. She likes skinny dipping of all things, but only when she's sure that we aren't around. We'd just be adding to her discomfort."

"I believe that we could acclimatize to being disrobed in each others presence. She is very content in your presence and she has a growing connection to me, which should help in the process. If we manage to alleviate her fear of us, we could be a vital element of support."

"You really think you can do that? I mean, even if she gets accustomed to your presence, let alone mine, you're still both going to suffer. There'll be like a hundred or more people there, not just the three of us."

"It will be extremely distressing and it will take a lot of strength, especially from you, as you will have to support both me and T'Pau. But the alternative would be either to let her suffer the distress alone or risk an interplanetary scandal. The relations between Vulcans and Betazoids have been strained for a long time and this could well be the final blow."

"Why would the Betazoids and the Vulcans not get along? You're both rather peaceful people."

"Betazoids are very strict in their expectations of adherence to their culture. They have several times extended similar invitations to Vulcan, whenever there was a royal wedding, and each time took offense when the High Command turned such invitations down. This event is even more important than all prior events and the offense at Vulcan's refusal would be even greater."

"Well don't they get a clue, that Vulcans just can't run about naked?"

"They expect us to adapt. In the same way as Vulcan expects Humans to adapt, when you are on our world. Unfortunately adaptability is something that Vulcans do not master well."

"Sounds like one helluva assignment, I'm not sure whether you two get out of that unscathed."

"It is a risk, but we have to take it, for the good of Vulcan. I shall go meditate," T'Pol explained and beat a hasty retreat.

"I'll call the Admiral," Trip sighed.

X X X

"Admiral," Trip saluted.

"Commander. What is the purpose of your call?"

"I've heard that you have a bit of a diplomatic problem at hand."

"That's an understatement if I ever heard one. How did you learn of that?"

"Had a visitor today, Captain Archer. T'Pol and me want to volunteer for this mission."

"You're taking the weight of the world off my shoulders," Gardner sighed. "May I ask, why?"

"Someone very dear to us, will get the very same invitation. And trust me, her problems make the diplomatic corps' whining look like a kindergarten."

"Minister T'Pau," Gardner deduced.

"Yes. In comparison to Vulcans, it's second nature for us to run around naked."

"You have no idea what a service you're doing for us – and seemingly for Vulcan as well. Please report to my office tomorrow. I'll make you a Captain and you'll get your diplomatic mission."

"Not complaining about the promotion, but don't feel obliged," Trip answered.

"We would have made you a Captain anyways before the trial runs of _Columbia. _We're just doing it a few weeks earlier."

"Thanks_, _Admiral. See you tomorrow."

"Until tomorrow, Goodnight Commander."

X X X

"Why are you wearing the ceremonial uniform?" T'Pol asked next morning.

"Well, darlin', I'm taking up my first diplomatic mission. Would be sorta disrespectful to go in a greasy overall, wouldn't it." Trip did his best to hide his real motive. He thought that this was a better backdrop for his fourth pip.

"Very well," T'Pol accepted – oblivious to the surprise that her mate hid from her.

X X X

"I hereby promote you to Captain," Gardner announced ceremoniously and pinned the fourth pip on a smiling Trip's collar, followed by the traditional hefty slap on the shoulders.

"Thank you, Admiral."

"We have to thank **you**. You are volunteering for the weirdest mission we ever had. Stay away from the west wing, all of the diplomatic corps will throw themselves at your feet for taking that one off their backs," Gardner laughed.

"Not that we're looking forward to it. But we're not going to let T'Pau suffer through that alone."

"You seem to like her a lot," Gardner teased.

"We do."

"Ok, report to Dr. Shinagawa. Room E.30. He'll brief you on anything we have about these Betazoids and he'll hand you your mission papers."

"Thanks, Admiral," Trip nodded in a Vulcan-like fashion, that he had unconsciously picked up from T'Pol, and left the office.

Gardner smiled as he watched Tucker leave.

X X X

"Any idea what that's all about?" Archer asked Shran as they were waiting for their visitor.

"No idea, maybe he is missing his engines. Lt. Hess once told me he was almost unhealthily attached to them."

"Hmpf," Archer grunted in doubt.

"Comm... uh... Captain?" Archer stammered as Trip emerged from the airlock – grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"Cap'n, Commander," Trip greeted nonchalantly.

"What did you do behind my back this time?" Jon asked in mock indignation.

"Thought I'd get at least an ale outta Shran while I do the explaining," Trip smirked, pointing at his new insignia.

"Who are we to deprive the man," the battle-hardened Andorian laughed and led the way to the Captain's mess, without waiting for the formal order from Captain Archer.

"You're to return to Betazed," Trip opened as they sat down and Shran started to fill the glasses.

"We are?" Archer asked.

"T'Pol and I are going on a diplomatic mission to Betazed, accompanied by the head of the Vulcan High Council. According to Admiral Gardner, you'll take us there."

Both Archer and Shran gulped audibly, realizing what mission that would be.

"And they saw fit to send a Captain, rather than a mere Commander," Trip continued.

"How did he talk you into that?" Archer asked.

"He didn't, we volunteered. We'll not let the lil' one suffer through that alone," Trip explained and stared absently into his glass.

Only now Archer really understood Trip's determination, when it came to his adopted Vulcan daughter. Shran did not understand at all.

"Damn, Trip, you're one gutsy fellow," Archer responded.

"For my girls, I'll do everything," Trip sighed and shot back the remnants of his ale.

"Gotta go back down, I need to drop by in sickbay," Trip sighed. "And I most likely have two distressed Vulcans at home, that's bad news."

"Vulcans are bad news most of the time," Shran quipped, before being silenced by a punch to his arm, courtesy of Captain Archer.

"Shut up, all his family is Vulcan," Jon hissed.

X X X

"Hi there, Trip."

"Malcolm," Trip enthused as he was intercepted by his friend on his way to sickbay.

"Captain?" the Brit asked wide-eyed.

"Long story, Mal, but I'll tell you when there's time. Heard you're one helluva Rommy killer," Trip sniggered.

"I've got no clue, how that happened. I actually missed my target and cannoned him in some under-belly patch which had those spikes on it. Just like that the bastard exploded."

Trip stopped abruptly, eyes wide open and slapped his forehead. "Mal, I need to see the sensor logs, now!"

"Situation room," Malcolm huffed, trying to keep up with Trip, who ran towards said location.

As if he never left, Trip keyed the bridge on the com-panel as soon as he entered the situation room. "This is Captain Tucker. Captain Archer, Lt. Sato, please report to the situation room, now!"

"Cap...?" Hoshi returned in surprise, but was cut short.

"Get movin' Hoshi and haul Jon's ass with ya." His thick drawl spoke of massive excitement and both Hoshi and Archer darted off the bridge.

"What the hell?" an out of breath Captain wheezed as soon as he arrived, followed by the petite communications officer, who grinned widely at seeing Trips fourth pip.

"We might have just won the lottery," Trip answered. "Hoshi, will ya play the sensor logs from that damn Romulan drone ship, when it was uncloaked?"

"There's that patch again," Malcolm exclaimed and pointed to a number of spikes under the drone ship's belly.

"That's where you shot them?" Trip asked with a smile. "Show me the logs from the hit at Betazed, Hoshi."

"Accidentally," Malcolm explained, almost apologetically.

As Trip watched the replay of the lucky punch, he saw that the cannon fire hit an almost identical spiky patch, although it was bigger than the one on the drone ship.

"That's their weakness," Trip enthused. "Those spikes are the holo emitters they use to cloak themselves or masquerade as other ships. T'Pol showed me the diagrams and I remember seeing them, when we ejected from that drone ship."

"And they are vulnerable?" Archer asked hopefully.

"In a way. First of all, there's no plating as they have to be exposed to space and they gobble an insane amount of energy, so they have to be near the warp core. If you hit them square, they'll set off a number of explosions and the warp core will breach before they even have a chance to eject it."

"The cascading explosions!" Malcolm squealed as realization set in. "When I hit that thing, there was a series of detonations before he blew up."

"And they build all their ships that way. YES! Bingo!" Trip shouted with a triumphant fist raised.

"I'll get Starfleet command," Archer added.

"Nope," Trip interrupted. "The less people know it, the less chance of the Romulans knowing that we know."

"Do you think there's a traitor in Starfleet command?" Hoshi asked.

"Does the name Ingvaldson ring a bell?" Trip asked grimly. "I've seen horses vomit in front of the pharmacy. That may be our only advantage over these bastards. Tell Erika and Shran, Jon, they should know. I'm off. My girls're waitin'." With that Trip left without a further word.

Jonathan Archer shook his head. In a span of 30 seconds, Trip had gone from triumphant to grim and bitter. The emotional turmoil that the last weeks had hurled him into was palpable and all three remaining officers in the sit-room shared a knowing, deeply worried glance.

X X X

T'Pol was just done preparing the mid day meal, when Trip came home in a somewhat subdued mood.

Doing a double take, she walked over with an elevated eyebrow. "I believe it is appropriate to convey a congratulation." Trip leaned in to kiss her.

"You have been on _Enterprise_?" she asked.

"How do you know?"

"Where else would you have been exposed to Andorian Ale?" she asked back, still high-browed.

"Nothing wrong with your sense of smell," Trip chuckled. "Yeah, I was there. They'll be taking us to Betazed. Met with Phlox, too."

As he continued his way into the dining room, he was intercepted by T'Pau. "My congratulations," she said and gently embraced him. It was more than a mere congratulatory hug, so much was obvious from her slight but noticeable trembling.

"Suppose we got a transmission from Vulcan?" Trip sighed with a look to his wife. T'Pol just nodded silently.

"C'mon, hon," Trip whispered and led T'Pau to the couch. Putting his arm around her, he let her rest her head on his shoulder, hoping that listening to the steady rhythm of his heart would help to calm her down.

"Minister Soval has informed the High Council that I will prepare for the... ordeal here on Earth," she reported calmly, barely showing an outward sign of her inner turmoil.

"You're taking it better than I thought," Trip said with an admiring undertone.

"The absence of an outward manifestation of fear does not mean that I am free of it," T'Pau answered.

T'Pol had meanwhile served the meal and the three ate in silence. After finishing their meal, it was time to discuss the upcoming challenges.

"Starfleet briefed me on the Betazoids and the mission as a whole," Trip started. "It looks like the naked thing isn't our only problem. We'll have to work hard in the meantime to get you both prepared for the challenge."

"Will you not require preparation?" T'Pau asked.

"I will, but it's not even half as awkward for a human as it will be for you. I'll be well embarrassed and I'll need a medicine from Phlox to prevent any... uh, visible body reactions, but that's about it."

"Why then did the entire diplomatic corps refuse to go on this mission?" T'Pol inquired.

"Darlin', all of them are middle-aged or old people, who know that their bodies are everything but attractive. That makes them self-conscious. Its hard to expose yourself if you know that you have some... deficiencies. If you're happy with your outer shell, it's way easier. And the Betazoids have some bad habits, too. In a world where everyone is a telepath, there's no use for sugar coating things, they'll just be brutally honest and tell you what they think, which is not a good idea if you're fat or aging."

"So, you are content with your outward appearance and that eases your distress?" T'Pau asked to check if she had deciphered his drawl correctly.

"Well, if my wife's secret ogling is anything to go by, it appears that I'm not the only one, who's content with it," Trip smirked, much to the shock of T'Pol.

"I did not know you were aware of it," she gasped with a pronounced blush.

"Well, darlin' you may hear and sniff better than me, but I sure as hell have eyes in my head to see you staring at me from behind the curtain."

T'Pau watched the banter between them with amused interest.

"I apologize, I will discontinue the practice," T'Pol answered.

"Don't need to," Trip laughed, causing her blush to intensify. "Why do you think I take my shirt off all the time?"

"You deliberately expose yourself to give mother the opportunity to observe you?" T'Pau asked.

"Sure, she likes it and I know that. I'm pretty sure that's why she wasn't wearing much herself, when we built the _Banya_. The pleasure goes both ways," Trip smirked, while T'Pol's blush approached the Orion girl stage.

"That assessment has merit, but I do not see the logic in deliberately embarrassing me. This will not help our preparations," she protested defensively.

"And how it does. I told you that the Betazoids have a knack for being brutally honest, even if it sounds rude. And the quicker we prepare for that, by doing it ourselves, the better we will cope with it. What do you think they'll do, when we stroll in there, wearing nothing but a nervous smile? They'll be blatantly honest and tell you how damn fine you're lookin' and what part of you they like the most. In my case, I've got a very good idea what's **that** gonna be and I'm definitely not lookin' forward to fighting my own blush and your bond reflexes at the same time," Trip drawled with a growing uneasiness.

"I did not understand," T'Pau revealed her confusion. T'Pol decided to put Trip's proposed course of action into practice immediately, while translating for T'Pau.

"Your father believes that it will be helpful if we exposed ourselves to blunt statements of truth, even if it sounds inappropriate. Since all Betazoids are telepaths they do not censor their words. He expects that the Betazoids will assess that we are aesthetically pleasing and that they will bluntly praise the body parts that they think to be most attractive. In your father's case, he expects them to admire his substantial genitals. I agree with that expectation, although I expect a number of compliments on his muscular torso and his derriere as well. He is also concerned that such uncensored praise might trigger my instinctive defensive reflexes and cause overt manifestations of his discomfort." Now it was Trip's turn to blush - massively.

"Like this sudden change in face color?" T'Pau asked with a giggle brow.

Trip decided to retaliate. "Now, wait hon until they first time tell you what nice pair o' boobs ya carrying around," he smirked, pointing at T'Pau's chest.

"That's not gone well," Trip sighed, noticing two very green faced Vulcans and one very purple faced human at the table.

"It appears that I have underestimated the magnitude of the ordeal," T'Pol analyzed after a lengthy, awkward silence, during which everyone returned to her or his natural face color.

"Father usually has a plan, even if our logic fails us," T'Pau answered and looked at Trip in hopeful expectation.

Patting her knee softly, he explained. "You're right, I have some ideas. I spoke with Phlox today. He'll whip up some elixir, that'll help to prevent any embarrassing body reactions. It will also act as a mild sedative to help with the blushes and the apprehension. The trickiest part will to get T'Pau comfortable with our presence."

"You are planning to make a disrobed condition mandatory?" T'Pau asked nervously.

"Sort of. T'Pol likes the _Banya_ and I'm sure you'll like it, too, and you both like swimming in your birthday suit. We're going to get you comfortable with T'Pol first. That'll be easier. So for the next days there'll be joint steam bath's for you two. I'll join in once you're no longer uncomfortable with T'Pol."

"A logical plan," T'Pol assessed.

X X X

An incoming transmission startled Trip, who was studying a PADD with information that Solan had transmitted from Jupiter station. His girls were off for 'acclimatization practice' in the _Banya_.

"Travis!" Trip exclaimed as he saw the face of his former shipmate appear.

"Hi, Trip. Is it true that you and T'Pol are gonna attend our wedding?"

"Yeah. We volunteered to help T'Pau. You'll have Vulcan guests for the first time."

"Roxana will be happy about that."

"You on Betazed already?"

"Not yet, I was decommissioned only a few hours ago. I'll leave tomorrow. A Rigelian courier is going to drop me off on Betazed."

"Seriously, I don't know whether to congratulate you or kick your head in for making us go through with that," Trip laughed.

"Don't think it'll be easy for me Trip, but she's worth it."

"I hope so. I'm happy for ya."

"Anything we can do to make it easier for you?"

"Would be nice to have some place, where the Ladies can hide if it gets too hard on them. For Vulcans to be seen naked in public is pure horror."

"Oh, Shit," Travis muttered. "I'll ask Roxana to do something about that."

"Something else Travis. There could be a problem if one of those Betazoids gets too honest."

"Tell me about it," Travis winced. "You wouldn't believe the things that Roxana said to me when I first dropped the pants," he giggled with a hint of embarrassment.

"That's the problem. If anyone too obviously compliments me, T'Pol's Vulcan reflexes might kick in and we're not talking about getting pissed off, Vulcan instincts are set to kill if someone chats up a Vulcan's mate."

"Is it that bad?"

"Let me put it that way. One compliment for the wrong body part and we have a casualty at hand."

"Ouch! Any way to suppress that? For the Betazoids it's just natural to be that blunt. I doubt that I can prevent it."

"Negative. We're trying to train her to give a warning before springing to action, like a sharp inhale or something, so that I can react before she maims someone. Don't hold it against us if we stay away from mingling with the other guests too much."

"I understand, Trip. Maybe Roxana can do something to prevent overly blatant praise."

"Hope so, see you soon, Travis."

"See you, Trip."

X X X

The preparations went ahead as planned. Both T'Pol and T'Pau had a hard time for the first 3 days as both were completely unaccustomed to expose themselves to anyone, but a healer – or Trip in T'Pol's case. Both noticed, however, how this strange and taxing practice did strengthen their own bond with each other. They gradually grew more comfortable with each others presence and even started to appreciate their joint steam baths and the following swim in the lake. Now it was time for Trip to join the party.

To their mutual surprise, there was absolutely no problem with his participation. T'Pau felt uneasy and self-conscious, when Trip joined for the first time, especially because he kept up his practice of relentless praising of T'Pol's and T'Pau's outer shells, but by the time of their second session, all problems were gone and the uneasiness subsided. The girls even grew accustomed to the praising and amused themselves by trying to make Trip blush with blatant compliments. T'Pau even started to join T'Pol in nude sunbathing during the day, but only if Trip had made sure that Major Setak would not admit any surprise visitors. Everyone short of Jesus Christ was to be sent away on those occasions. It was unusual for a Vulcan, but she grew to like these activities, much as T'Pol had done.

_Gonna be the first Vulcans ever to get a sun tan,_Trip thought in amusement.

X X X

_Enterprise_ was on her way to Betazed. Captain Archer had provided them with the big guest quarters, which had been installed during the repairs after the battle near Betazed, while T'Pau was residing in the quarters that once belonged to T'Pol.

Heavily panting, T'Pol recovered from a very passionate bout of bond consummation. Returning from a meeting with Phlox, Trip had wordlessly stripped off his clothes and asked her the same, before launching into a very passionate intimate encounter.

"I do not complain," T'Pol wheezed, still glowing from his uncharacteristic display of almost Vulcan manliness. "May I ask the reason for this uncharacteristic course of action?"

"Well, when Phlox injects me with his medicine tomorrow, there won't be anything going on down there for at least 48 hours," Trip explained, pointing to the nether regions. "As a good mate I cannot risk that my wife is left in need. And the lil' one will be here any minute, too."

"Do you sense her approach?" T'Pol asked in surprise.

"No, but she'll be scared out of her mind about tomorrow. What do you think she'll be doing?"

"She will seek the presence of her _En'ahr'at_."

"Exactly. We'll probably be three in that bed tonight and that's why I wanted to care for your and my needs beforehand."

"A very logical course of action, _Ashayam_," T'Pol returned giggle-browed as she followed him into the shower.

True to Trip's forecast, the door chime announced a visitor, not long after they had made themselves comfortable in the bed. Expecting company for the night they had deviated from their practice of sleeping in the nude.

"Come in, hon."

"You did know that I was coming?" T'Pau asked after entering the room.

"Well, it's not that difficult to riddle you out, hon," Trip answered with a smile and patted the bed between himself and T'Pol to signal his approval to join them.

Not needing such an invitation twice, T'Pau dropped out of her robe, donned some silk pajama, which T'Pol had laid out for her and crawled up between her parents. Trembling with apprehension, she cuddled up to Trip in their now customary 'meditation snuggle'. Patiently he kept stroking her scraggly hair until she finally fell asleep.

X X X

After _Enterprise_ arrived in orbit around Betazed, preparations were in full swing for 'the family', as the three were quickly named by the ships rumor mill. Except for Captain Archer and Dr. Phlox, nobody knew about the fact that by Vulcan law their former shipmates had adopted the Vulcan leader, but everyone with half a brain could see the deep connection between the two Vulcans and _Enterprise's_ former chief miracle worker.

On the way to the airlock Shran forgot about Archers warning, not to joke about their upcoming ordeal and a smirking remark to T'Pau earned him a hefty grab of his collar and a furious stare, courtesy of Captain Tucker.

"You better not make an enemy of the guy, who nails together your next boat," Archer said with a disapproving look, after the shuttle had left.

"I didn't know that he was **that** protective of her," Shran winced, agonized by his stupid mistake.

True to his promise, Travis had made sure that the joint delegation of Earth and Vulcan had been assigned a private room adjacent to and accessible from the main hall. That would allow them to sneak away for a while, should the distress become too unbearable. Having shed their clothing, the family sat in the room, with T'Pau clinging to Trip's arm for support. A loud gong announced the start of the proceedings. "Here we go," Trip sighed, as they made their way into the main hall. T'Pau threw Vulcan protocol over board immediately and grabbed Trip's hand to hang on for dear life.

The first hour was hard. While there was no danger of blunt praising during the main ceremony, they had been ushered into a very exposed front row position in the rectangular formation around the ritual gong. Trip managed to shove T'Pau behind his back, shielding her from the most blatant glances with his hunky frame. T'Pol's composure took a heavy beating due to her exposed position. Trip's hands were in high demand, both being clung to by distressed Vulcans, who had abandoned Vulcan prohibition of such gesture.

Trip noticed that all front rows were populated by young, beautiful Betazoids. _Good grief, I didn't think they'd be **that** blatant! What must the folks in the last row look like. _He thought with a shudder.

After the conclusion of the main ceremony – Travis was now a Prince of the Third House – there was a short recess, which the family used for some much needed hiding in their assigned room. Both Vulcans clung to him in a desperate family hug, as Trip tried to calm down his wife and his lil' one. Roxana had caught a glimpse of them almost fleeing the hall. Quizzing Travis about it, he reminded her, what sort of distress the Vulcans endured in their honor.

T'Pau was suffering. T'Pol was distressed but not nearly as heavily as the young leader of the High Council. Despite her own struggle, she could sense the lifeline that her very presence threw to her adoptive daughter. Just knowing that she wasn't the only Vulcan in this struggle kept T'Pau from breaking down.

The meal was less troubling. Travis had managed to have them seated at a more remote position, saving them from the many glances of the other guests. Being excellent hosts, the Betazoids had made sure that all alien guests were presented with food that was acceptable in their native culture. Wine was served with the next course and Trip cautiously sampled its alcohol content. Two distressed Vulcans was bad enough – two drunken Vulcans would be too much.

After two glasses Trip noticed that T'Pol eased up slightly. She still clung to his hand, but only in a normal fashion, rather than trying to break it. T'Pau, however, still held on firmly – painfully firmly.

After completion of the meal, the hardest part began – mingling with the other guests.

"Trip," Travis called out as he approached them with his newly wedded wife.

"Princess Roxana," Trip greeted and nodded politely.

"We are honored to have Vulcan guests for the first time," Roxana answered, "especially of such extraordinary beauty."

"The people of Vulcan are honored as well," T'Pol returned, summoning all of what was left of her composure. Trip's hand had to pay the painful price.

"I am pleased to see that both Vulcan and Earth have sent two of their most exciting specimens to honor us," Roxanna launched into the danger zone, with Travis' face expressing a distinct worry, "Captain Tucker, you will surely produce very impressive offspring with that equipment," she finished with a smile, looking blatantly at a region, that T'Pol was very protective of.

A sharp inhale announced trouble. Trip grabbed T'Pol's arm forcefully, while Travis, at the sound of the signal that Trip had briefed him about, quickly drew his wife out of sight.

"What is wrong?" Roxanna asked, confused about the situation.

"You're forgetting whom you speak to. They're no Betazoids. You just talked about offspring to two people who lost a child a few weeks ago," Travis fumed, making his wife's eyes go wide. "And you made a blatant overture to a Vulcan's mate. There's no stun setting on their protective reflexes. I didn't marry you, just so you get yourself killed during the ceremony. I thought you had understood that, when I explained it."

"We should inform the other guests. I will assure that they know."

"How? You want to make a public announcement?" Travis asked, still angry about the blunder.

"Yes, Betazed style."

A telepathic call out made all the alien visitors look at the newlyweds while Roxanna briefed them on the situation. As all glares went over from Travis and his wife to them, Trip knew, it had something to do with them. He visually checked on the faces of his two girls and both didn't look too happy. Trip winced when he saw T'Pau's eyes go moist. Having 200 people look at you is not very convenient at the best of times. If you're stark naked and scared witless already when it happens, it can break the best.

"Betazoids are strong telepaths. I have no doubt, she has warned them of me," T'Pol whispered.

The effect of the telepathic announcement was obvious. The pair of them was approached by other guests, but they carefully avoided any praises and most guests focused on T'Pol to avoid upsetting her by addressing her mate. Trip had a slight feeling of being ignored, but he preferred that massively over having to keep his wife from mutilating other guests. In addition to that, he had his hands full, literally, with T'Pau. She had avoided most of the interaction, by walking behind Trip and T'Pol, desperately clinging to his hand, which by now had several bruises. A highly distressed Vulcan was obviously utterly useless at controlling her strength, especially a very young one. T'Pau was in very bad shape. The hall was well-heated by human standards, but rather cool for Vulcans. Trip had noticed slight goose bumps on T'Pol's arms, yet T'Pau had several beads of sweat showing on her forehead and Trip knew, it was time to get out of there.

Catching a glance of Travis, Trip made a subtle head movement, hinting him to come over.

"Trip?"

"Listen Travis," Trip explained in a low voice, "The lil' one's had it. Any longer in here and we'll have a medical emergency at hand."

"It's ok, Trip. The first guests are leaving anyway. I'll tell Roxanna, that you had to leave urgently and couldn't say g'bye."

"Thanks, best luck to you two."

"Thanks, the best for you, too."

As soon as the family was back to their room, Trip crouched down with a pained groan, rubbing his hand, which was showing blueish-violet bruises all over the fingers and the palm. During the last minutes out in the hall, T'Pau had almost broken his hand. She was sweating and had tears in her eyes, a sure sign that she had reached critical mass. His wife wasn't in good shape either. Her nostrils were flaring and her body trembled from the emotional onslaught. He helped the shaking T'Pau get clothed, carefully avoiding to brush any sensitive parts. Another reflex whistle was the last thing he wanted to put upon his wife. Aware of this, alarmed by strong waves of extreme wariness in the bond, T'Pol had turned away as a precaution. After he got himself back into his uniform, he took each Vulcan by the hand to get them out of there. T'Pol carefully took the side where the bruised hand was, to avoid further damage, since T'Pau could not be trusted to regain control over her strength. In fact halfway to the shuttle he had to carry her, because she had started to shake badly and her knees didn't carry her anymore. Getting T'Pau to sickbay had become a race. Inwardly Trip started to whip himself for having tried to get her trough it, rather than just preventing her from doing it. After all there must have been a logical reason, why Vulcan had declined to attend for half a century.

X X X

Captain Archer was waiting at the airlock alone. He had left Shran behind to keep the big chair warm, since he didn't look forward to more of Shran's misplaced jokes.

As the airlock hissed open, T'Pol darted out, ignoring Archer completely and sped off towards their quarters. Archer looked back to see a very shaken Trip, tears in his eyes, carrying the passed out head of the Vulcan High Council.

"I should never have let them go through that.", he pressed in self-reproach and walked off towards sick bay. Archer followed him, but could not think of anything useful to say to his friend.

"Ah Capt...", Phlox stopped his happy greeting as soon as he saw the cargo, which Trip carried to the biobed. He started hovering the scanner all over her, as soon as Trip had put her down.

"Captain, you are impeding my scans, you must let go of her."

Archer shook his head lightly at the sight of Trip's protective stance. The doctor almost had to pry his hand from T'Pau's. Trip looked like being ready to jump the doctors throat, should he make any wrong move. Whatever happened down there, it hadn't been pretty.

"She has suffered a neurological shock, she must have been in extreme distress and I can imagine why," Phlox analyzed .

"Well, I sorta know my way around Vulcans by now, so I saw when she'd had it. It's not every day that ya see tears on a Vulcan. When I saw them tears, I jus' made sure we got the fuck outta there...", Trip sighed sadly. His hideous drawl and the ripe language was a sure sign of Trip being in turmoil. Archer became even more worried.

"Don't worry Captain, you took the right decision, on both accounts.", the Doctor reassured, guessing Trips doubts about whether or not it was a smart move to go down there in the first place.

Tending to Trips hand the Doctor inquired about the injury.

"Well, a Vulcan girl hold'n ya hand can get fuckin' rough when she's scared shitless." Phlox was taken aback. He had never heard Mr. Tucker use that many strong profanities before. It was evident that the human was deeply troubled.

"You shouldn't have allowed that, you are very fortunate that it is only tissue damage," Phlox lectured.

"Couldn't take the last bit o' protection from ma lil' girl," Trip answered softly and his head dropped in sadness as tears began to flow..

Exchanging a glance with a choking Captain Archer, Phlox, now fighting tears himself, whispered admiringly to himself "I wish some biological fathers would be **that** devoted to their offspring, Mr. Tucker."

"I will keep Minister T'Pau here until the morning, you may-" Phlox started aloud.

"Will she need any medication?" Trip interrupted sternly, nostrils flaring, his face tear-stained but determined.

"No, but she..."

"Then I know exactly what she needs, thanks Doc. We'll call ya, when she wakes up," Trip said and turned to leave sickbay, carrying his Vulcan daughter away.

"Captain," Phlox called softly after him. Trip stopped. "Transmit a scan every two hours please," the Doctor added with an encouraging, but teary Denobulan grin and slipped a small scanner into Trip's pocket.

With that Trip left sickbay without a further word.

Noticing Archers stunned and confused look about how Trip had just dismissed the Doctor, Phlox explained. "Never get in the way of a father, especially if he is as devoted and stubborn as Captain Tucker." The Denobulan retrieved a tissue to wipe the moisture from his eyes.

X X X

T'Pol shot up from her meditation cushion as soon as she heard the door open. Noticing Trip's messed up face, she looked at him with concern. "Is she well?"

"She'll be," Trip answered and put T'Pau down on their bed. He laid down beside her and rolled her over, so that her head rested on his chest.

"Join us T'Pol?"

"No, I prefer to spend the night in meditation. Please help the little one." She didn't notice the teary smile on his face, when she used his favorite diminutive.

X X X

Phlox did not believe, what he saw on the screen. Just minutes earlier, the 5th transmission of T'Pau's vital signs had arrived from the guest quarters. By all he knew, the improvement in Minister T'Pau's neurological activity would mean that she had spent the 10 hours, since Captain Tucker had carried her out of sickbay, in intense meditation. But there was the little fact that she was unconscious, which riddled the good Doctor. How could she meditate while being unconscious?

His thinking was interrupted by T'Pol, who darted into sickbay. "She's waking up, Doctor and she is in pain."

"Unsurprisingly," Phlox returned, grabbed the medical kit and ran after the Vulcan.

As Captain Archer neared a T-junction, he was almost run over, when Phlox and T'Pol sped around the corner in full gallop. Doing an about-face, he set off in pursuit, wondering why T'Pol hadn't just com'ed the Doctor.

"I don't think that I've see something like that before," Phlox said as he entered their quarters. T'Pau was lying almost on top of Commander Tucker, with his arm slung around her protectively. A faint groan was proof of her pain.

Archer quickly closed the door to prevent any passing by crewmen from seeing the Vulcan Minister in such a situation. T'Pol shot him a grateful glance.

"It is a... frequent event. This form of contact has a... meditative effect on Captain Tucker and T'Pau," T'Pol explained.

"That explains a lot," Phlox returned and administered a hypospray that sent T'Pau back into an unconscious slumber. Trip shot him an enraged death stare.

"I apologize, Captain Tucker. Minister T'Pau was not meant to wake up so quickly. She needs at least 24 hours more to recuperate and I suspect you prefer her to be here rather than sickbay."

"Sorry, Doc," Trip muttered and his exhaustion was palpable.

"You have not slept, have you?"

"Who do you think did the scans, doc," Trip replied weakly.

"It would be advisable to move both of you to sickbay. While your contact is obviously very conductive to Minister T'Pau's recovery, we cannot risk further exhaustion on your part."

"I will transmit the scans," T'Pol interrupted. "I was unable to do so, since I required several hours of meditation, but I am sufficiently recovered to do that now. This will allow Captain Tucker to rest."

Trip didn't notice any of that as he had already passed out into a deep, dreamless sleep. Doctor Phlox would have had preferred a scan that wasn't impeded by Captain Tucker's vital signs, but he could not bring himself to ask that the entangled pile of father and daughter be separated. Smilingly he left the quarters, followed by Captain Archer.

"Why didn't T'Pol just call you?" Archer asked with a puzzled look as they walked back to sickbay.

"In her current state, high-pitched sounds like the chirp of the communication device would have been extremely painful for Minister T'Pau. T'Pol knew that."

"Will she be OK?"

"She will, in fact she will recover quicker than I imagined. Captain Tuckers' therapy might be nothing you will find in a Vulcan text book, but it is more efficient than any therapy that I can offer."

"Yeah, Trip has always been a miracle worker," Archer replied smiling, hiding the sadness that built up in him. He really missed Trip as his best friend.

X X X

"You appear well, despite the ordeal," Soval droned as he and T'Pau walked through the long corridor of the Vulcan High Council.

"I suffered a neurological shock, but I have recovered."

"Did a Vulcan healer confirm this diagnosis? It usually takes far longer than 3 days to recover from such a trauma," Soval inquired with a confused look.

"Doctor Phlox made that assessment. As father is fond of saying, he 'mops the floor' with any other healer. Father must know, since he was Doctor Phlox' most frequent patient during his time on _Enterprise_. I see no logic in doubting his diagnosis."

"Very well," Soval returned, hiding his amusement about T'Pau's use of human humor. "I believe you will find the latest communique from Betazed most agreeable."

"Explain."

"The Betazoids expressed their regret for the discomfort that you endured to honor their traditions. They have made it known, that on future occasions, they will not take offense if alien guests leave the premises after the formal ceremony. They also assured us that Vulcan guests will be positioned in... less exposed positions," Soval explained and his puzzled look conveyed the unspoken question, what that was all about.

"Evidently the Betazoids perceived the forms of my _En'ahr'at_ and mine as aesthetically appealing and therefore positioned us in a very exposed position at the front of the audience."

Soval gasped slightly, but quickly regained his control.

"Fortunately, father managed to place me behind himself, shielding me from the most inquisitive looks. A maneuver that you are well familiar with, if memory serves me right, Minister. Your frame might be substantial, however your height is not. I saw father and mother exchanging their _Ozh'esta_ in the High Council."

An amused eyebrow lift was all she got for an answer.


	11. Casus Belli

**11. ****Casus Belli**

Authors Note:

_This story picks up 4 months after the Events of "The Betazed Mission".It's not meant for minors as mildly erotic content is part of it.  
_

_Trip nails together Shran's first Starfleet ship and our favorite couple makes a short comeback in space, when it is time for the trial runs. Not everybody is awfully happy with that. The Romulans certainly hate the idea. _

_Another big thank you goes to **aadarshinah **for proof-reading this behemoth of a chapter. Sifting her way though chapters 10 and 11, she has beta'ed no less than 47 pages of writing for me today. You go girl!_

Act 1 : Flashback

A lot had happened, since Trip and T'Pol had returned from Vulcan, after learning just how taxing an experience it can be to be invited to a wedding. As T'Pol had predicted, the relations between Vulcans and Betazoids had undergone a substantial change. Embassies for both species had been established on each other's home worlds and Betazoid scientists had provided valuable material about telepathy, giving new insights into mating and parental bonds of Vulcans. The pointy-eared guys had provided help with ship technology to make Betazoid cruisers capable of standing a chance against more substantial threats. The Betazoids were a peaceful race, but the threat from the Romulans grew by the day and a step up in ship weaponry was unavoidable.

Trip and T'Pol learned the hard way that adopting T'Pau was not all positive, especially for Trip. Like any human father would, Trip started missing his little girl badly after several weeks and it wasn't like he could just jump into a hover car and drive over either. His little girl was on a different planet and forced to play big boss all day. The conflict with increasingly aggressive Romulans that was almost inevitably coming made any thought of leaving the post for a visit to Earth impossible.

The bond between them was maturing well. T'Pol was needy as ever and Trip had no ideas of becoming celibate either, so consummation was a frequent event. T'Pol had become very fond of human mating practices; she had in fact started to get quite experimental, since the human way gave her a much better payload of emotional pleasure than the Vulcan, effective and quick style. Trip had made it customary though, to once in a while let her stew for 4 or 5 nights before awarding her a night long seeing-to of sometimes double digit bouts of Vulcan style speed mating, full program with one or two trophy bites. He was not only hell bent on making sure that she didn't become too un-Vulcan, he also wanted to prepare himself for the speed mating marathon that would be her _pon farr._

Two months after leaving Vulcan, Trip had started to receive his first crude indications of their bond. It was very confusing at first, since it took him some time to learn how to filter out his from her emotions. He was pretty much in the same position T'Pol had been in when they married. Only strong emotions could wash over to him, but it was an encouraging start and it lessened T'Pol's worries that he could never really experience their bond because of his missing natural telepathy.

Betazoid scientists had checked out Trip and started a joint human/Vulcan/Betazoid research program on human reactions to telepathy. They considered it a good will gesture for Trip and T'Pol's attendance at the wedding, despite their difficulties. First results had shown that the human brain's ability to adapt or train certain regions to take over from injured regions,made it possible to make a human at least minimally receptive to telepathy. Betazoid scientists had been working on a training program that would allow telepaths to reach certain human brain regions and stimulate adaption. That program had been initiated on Roxanna's orders. No doubt her husband Travis played a role in her wish as well.

Work on _Challenger_ had been progressing very well, especially since T'Pau had ordered 10 of Vulcan's finest engineers, including Professor Solan, to haul their behinds over to Earth and help the humans with both expertise and logic. This move was very welcomed by Starfleet Command and the Vulcans, who had a very high respect for the human who helped their leader through a very tricky mission, bounced off many ideas on improving the engines even further. An agreement between Earth and Vulcan made _Challenger _the first human ship to be equipped with Vulcan shielding technology.

The true nature of T'Pau's connection to Trip was not common knowledge on Vulcan or Earth, as both thought it was not anyone's business, but news had gotten around on both worlds that he had volunteered for that rather touchy business on Betazed for her sake and this had earned him a lot of respect on both worlds. T'Pau had offered to give him access to their Warp 7 design data, but he had declined. He wanted Earth to achieve that on their own, rather than being granted the leap through personal relations. She had accepted his views, but extracted the promise that he would accept it if any indication was ever found that the Romulans would be capable of more than warp 5. The encounters that had been so far, had never shown them faster than Warp 4.5.

The coalition between Andoria, Coridan, Earth, Tellar, Vulcan and Betazed was working well. Joint patrols were flown, mostly by Andoria and Vulcan. The Tellarites had handed over two space docks to Earth to churn out more NX-class ships. They also helped build a new space dock near Saturn. Saturn station was planned to start building the new prototype Warp 6 Constitution-class ship. Trip was scheduled to switch to that project once _Challenger_ would be handed over to the blue guy. If everything went according to schedule, he would be test driving _Challenger_ as temporary Captain, with a very familiar Vulcan first officer, before _Challenger_ would be officially commissioned and put under the command of Shran. She was about to become the first Starfleet ship to be commanded by an alien officer permanently.

Before that, a Coalition conference was planned on Earth where Vulcan and Andoria would present their findings from their joint patrols and a strategy against the increasingly aggressive Romulans was to be worked out. Roughly 1 month after that the test flights of _Challenger_ were to begin.

Act 2. Bayside Manor/_Banya_

Trip came home from the space dock about half-an-hour late, since on his way out, Solan, had presented him with a solution for the installation of the new type of plasma injectors. They had been stumped by that problem for almost a week and, seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, he took the extra time to review Solan's proposal and happily gave the orders to go through with it.

As he closed the front door, he noticed with a gasp that his wife nervously paced the dining room, stark naked. _Darn, 6 days was definitely one too many! _he thought. Seeing her in that state was definitely a 'no grope' warning. Not too long ago, before a night of Vulcan-style fun, he had groped her from behind, while she was shedding the last piece of clothing, ready to set out for their love nest out on the beach. Feeling the long yearned for contact, she had thrown him forcefully on the table, crushing it in the process and had mounted him relentlessly on the spot for the rest of the night, leaving her mate with the embarrassing task of explaining wooden splinters in his back and no less than 13 bite marks on his shoulders and biceps to a Starfleet medic the next day.

If she was up-and-ready then, seeing her pacing the room stark naked, skin in Orion mode, caused him to make a mental note, never again to let her stew 6 days before a Vulcan-style date. Knowing what was at stake, he practically jumped out of every piece of clothing and grabbed their 'Vulcan mating toolbox', a bag that contained a Tri-ox hypospray among other essential tools for a Vulcan date, and quickly followed his panting wife as she darted out of the terrace door. It would be a long night…

X X X

Lovingly, T'Pol wiped the blood stains off her mate's shoulder after having disentangled herself from him the next morning.

"It was not my intention to injure you," she said softly when she noticed his eyes opening.

"I know. But I'm sure as hell not going to stop you bit'n, it's part of your nature."

"I experience pain in my legs when moving. Did I fall?"

"Nope darlin', what you have is probably just the Vulcan counterpart of a hefty muscle ache. Riding yourself up and down on me is a hefty workout for your legs and you went for 15 rounds last night. I thought I'll never wake up again. T'was a big mistake to wait that long. I don't wanna become the first Starfleet officer to die by excessive copulation."

"It was unwise to wait that long. But your endurance during the process proves your exceedingly agreeable quality as a mate, _Ashayam_," she said before kissing him with a massive manifestation of the giggle brow.

X X X

Cleaning up the dishes after the evening meal, T'Pol looked back at the day's events. Both she and her husband had endured a rather taxing day. Due to her first ever bout with sore leg muscles, she had trouble maintaining a somewhat dignified way to walk without getting any inquisitive looks. The fact that pleasure central was sore as well, didn't help at all. Her husband had almost choked during the meal, when she bluntly reported that her primary delicious part suffered from signs of excessive friction. Ever the loving husband, he had promised to do something about that later.

Putting those events aside, she was bracing herself for the emotional onslaught, that was about to come. It was one of those evenings, which Trip spent endlessly talking with his lil' one. Separated from her for over 4 months now, he was badly missing her and his emotional nature did not help at all. At more than one occasion, he had started to cry after having to end the transmission.

Although she had spent every day with him for almost half a year now, T'Pol still could not understand how that strong man, who would lead an engineering team with grim determination, who had stood up to V'Lon in the High Council with a composure that would have honored a Vulcan, could fall into such an emotional distress when faced with loss or grief. When it came to things concerning his wife or T'Pau, he was capable of experiencing emotions of frightening magnitude and, on several occasions, T'Pol had had to yank up the shields to stabilize the bond.

T'Pol gasped loudly and swung around, as a massive jolt of joy hit her unexpectedly though the bond. She was prepared for the now-familiar wave of sadness that followed Trip's long-range conversations with the woman whom his love for was only second to his affection for his wife, but such a hammering of pure joy could only have one logical conclusion. A massive bear hug accompanied by a kiss that took 'passionate' to a whole new level yanked her from her thinking process. After what seemed to be an eternity, they broke the kiss and she scanned his face. Tears were running down his face, but a grin, that would require heavy mining equipment to wipe it off again, was a sure sign that these tears were a manifestation of massive joy.

"When will she arrive?"

"You knew?"

"Trip, you have been crying for almost an hour after your last conversation with your daughter and I had to shield myself from your strong distress, which was transmitted through our bond. The force of your most recent transmission, exceedingly strong joy, was most unexpected and almost overwhelmed me. It was therefore the only logical conclusion that your ordeal would soon be coming to an end by her visiting or us going to Vulcan."

"Infallible logic as always," he beamed before melting her mind again by a long kiss with an extra passionate bum groping.

"We shall be careful not to tempt ourselves. After last night's events I am in no condition to provide relief for any… arousal."

"I know, neither am I. I'll smear some nice balm into your sore delicious part later, so you'll be ready for action again in a few days," he said softly with a very mischievous grin.

"Will T'Pau participate in the Coalition talks?"

"Yep. And she didn't request any quarters in the Vulcan embassy," he grinned.

"Requesting accommodation at the embassy would be illogical. She may not express it, but she has been missing your presence as strongly as you missed hers. It is logical to assume, that she will make sure to reunite with you most expeditiously."

X X X

T'Pol was positioned on her back, on the bench in the heated up _Banya_ with her legs spread apart, exposing pleasure central completely.

"Ok, darlin', think about something scientific, calculate Pi to 100 digits or whatever, I'll try ta balm up ya strained parts, ok?" A nod was the answer as she closed her eyes. She did blush slightly and her breath became slightly heavier, when he was done coating her the outside of pleasure central, but she was quick to recover again.

"Ok, turn 'round, I'm gonna massage your wrecked muscles, ya legs are stiff as a rock."

As he started massaging her sore muscles he made sure to apply more pressure than during a more erotically targeted massage and carefully avoided any accidental contact with pleasure central.

"Darlin', I was meaning to ask. The lil' one will not get to the conference for the first 3 days. Is our bond strong enough so that we could be separated for two days without zoning out?"

"I believe yes, if we were separated no longer than 48 hours and I would refrain from meditating. A longer period would, however, be detrimental to my emotional stability and spontaneous daydreams will grow more likely. Are you foreseeing a period of separation?"

"I'm planning one. I was meaning to go on a mountain tour with T'Pau, before she goes to that conference."

"Does the exclusion of my presence have a particular reason?"

"Well, someone has to stay on _Columbia,_ darlin'"

After a few more strokes on her sore muscles he playfully gave her a light slap on the bum. "Get up darlin' let's go for a swim."

X X X

"Will you explain the reason behind this tour?" she asked as they swam alongside each other slowly in the moon light.

"It's an earth custom that father and son or father and daughter go on a trip together. Reason is that human children usually have a stronger connection to their mother than their father. Those trips are meant to intensify the connection to the father by spending time alone. I know that T'Pau doesn't need any intensification, she'll be plastered to me for hours, but I also want her to see something of Earth. She's seen nothing beyond our estate so far. I know she'd be happy enough just lying around on the beach, but that can't be the purpose of the exercise."

"A very agreeable plan."

"I noticed that you experienced concern, when you spoke about T'Pau's attachment to you," T'Pol stated as a request for explanation.

"Well, I'm worried that my being human wrecks her standing on Vulcan."

"Why would the fact that you are human have a detrimental effect on her? Most Vulcans have a great deal of respect for you."

"It's not my existence that I'm worried about. It's some of the human habits she's picked up. She makes jokes, she likes lying on the beach cuddling up to me and she almost became an impulsive nudist by the time we had finished that damn training for Betazed. I can see it in my head, what happens when she comes here. She'll hug me, then she'll make a beeline for the beach, jump out of her clothes and go for a swim. Afterward she'll expect me to be her pillow and if I don't say anything, she'll not even bother to cover herself up for it. That's 5 things, which for a good Vulcan are usually a no-no. I don't wanna turn her into a human, she's a Vulcan and she should stay that way."

"Trip," she interrupted his verbal self-flogging. "You are not causing harm to her. It is a great source of contentment that you allow her to do all, which you described."

"But Vulcans aren't supposed to hug and they surely aren't supposed to like lying on a beach butt-naked. Hell she even drank a beer last time."

"She explained all that before. Since you are human, Vulcan gestures of affection would hold absolutely no appeal for you. You are restricting our public contact to the _Ozh'esta_ for my sake, but I know that it unsatisfactory for you. That's why I kiss and hug you, whenever we are out of public view. Those gestures are satisfactory for you and not at all unpleasant for me either. T'Pau merely follows the same reasoning."

"Yeah, but that doesn't explain the knack for naked sun tanning that you both have."

"Trip, on Vulcan the two suns would burn our skin in a matter of hours. That's why nobody ever tried it. Without it ever having been tried, no Vulcan could have known the agreeable nature of such activity. Humans engage in such activities on public beaches. That would be completely unacceptable for both T'Pau and myself. Our beach is the only place in which we would allow ourselves to do that. You have nothing to reproach yourself for. On the contrary, you are a most agreeable father and, according to Soval, T'Pau shows no signs of improper conduct in public except for the occasional joke when she is in private conversation with him."

"You've been discussing T'Pau's behavior with Soval?"

"As her maternal _En'ahr'at__,_ it is my duty to care for her well-being. Soval was a friend of my father and he is to me what humans would call a godfather. My father tasked him with the care for my well-being before he died."

"That explains some things. Good to hear that T'Pau's behaving herself. I would really hate it if she would do something improper and I'd be responsible for it."

"What?" he asked, seeing a pronounced giggle-brow on T'Pols features.

"Soval only said that she behaved properly in **public**. He is not privy to what happens, when she is alone in our home," she answered with an amused eyebrow still firmly heading north.

"You just said the sun would burn your skin," Trip asked – a suspicion forming in his mind.

"A lesson that she will surely have learned," T'Pol answered amused.

"Wouldn't you have liked to be a fly on the wall, when she had to explain the first ever sunburn in Vulcan history," Trip laughed as he realized what T'Pol tried to say.

"I have started research on a protective substance, so that she will not find herself in that predicament again."

"Inventing Vulcan sun screen, you're something else darlin'," he proclaimed, still laughing.

He submerged, dove below her and gave her nipples a suck and a short twirl of the tongue, before returning above water level on the other side of her. Slightly panting, she mock scolded him and reminded him of their temporary celibacy.

"Just an appetizer for when you're not sore anymore," he teased.

The reference to food, when it came to intimate matters, lit up a light bulb in her mind and the giggle brow almost fell off.

Act 3 : NX-03 Challenger

"Captain, Commander, welcome aboard _Challenger_," T'Pol nodded.

"Thank you Commander. Starfleet blue?" Archer asked at seeing T'Pol in a standard issue blue uniform.

"I am of the belief that my usual uniform was detrimental to the efficiency of the crew. Since changing to... this design the performance of the male crew has increased significantly."

"No doubt commander," Shran said without his usual smugness.

"Why didn't Trip come along, isn't he aboard?" Archer inquired as they made their way toward the half finished bridge.

"Captain, we are on a ship that is not in a finished condition and when I checked for the last time, my husband was still an engineer, did you realistically expect him to wait for you at the airlock?"

Both _Enterprise_ officers laughed heartily at T'Pol_'_s improving attempts at humor.

"So he's in engineering?"

"No he is making modifications to the bridge. My latest proposal was to... paint the captain's chair blue."

"Very funny!" Shran mock-pouted, while Archer doubled over in laughter.

"Damn, T'Pol, Trip's really been rubbing off on you," Archer said still sniggering.

When they reached the bridge, they found Trip crouched by the captain's chair, working away at a side panel.

"That's the first time I see a captain rigging his own chair," Shran exclaimed with a laugh.

"Not my chair Shran, don't worry. I'll just keep it warm for you, when I test drive her. You two seem pretty amused about something," Trip commented when he offered Archer and Shran a handshake.

"Well your wife has been keeping us quite entertained. Never knew she's started to joke like a pro," Archer laughed.

"Well, it's one of those instances when she allows herself to be in what passes on Vulcan for a giddy mood. And the lil' one's coming for a visit, too. She doesn't want to look too pale, when the short stuff starts joking like the best of 'em. And I can tell ya, when these two conspire to yank my chain, oh dear..." Trip chuckled, while T'Pol stood by heavily giggle-browed.

Looking at her he knew exactly where that mood came from. She had announced, bluntly, over the morning meal, that a specific body part had seized to be sore and with that, implicitly, the plans for the evening where considered drawn up, discussed and ratified - effective immediately.

"So, how's things on my ex?" Trip asked in reference to his former ship, as he directed them to the captains mess.

"Well, looking not too pretty," Archer started. "We ran into some damn troubles with the Romulans again. We were conducting a patrol near Coridan space, when a warbird decloaked and opened fire on our Andorian escort ship. We had him a sitting duck in a joint fight, just about to start scanning, when suddenly they blew themselves up and a few of their pieces went right through our hull. We're stranded for at least 2 weeks. Starfleet engineering is working day and night, so we're ready to escort you on your second trial run. For the first one you'll have to make do with the Andorians."

"He will get over it, captain," T'Pol delivered deadpan.

"If it took two ships to disable them, they must have been doing quite some progress in defenses. That doesn't sound good. T'Pol says they are sneaky bastards and don't get aggressive until they're sure to have a big advantage. If it takes two ships to bomb them, the shit has already started flying and it's not a long ride to the fan anymore."

"And they seem to know about their vulnerability, too. They always kept the underside away from us."

"Nothing a good helmsman can't take care of."

"Well, our good helmsman is now a Prince on Betazed," Archer sighed. "The new ensign hasn't much experience. If it wasn't for my duty in the big chair, I'd have flown myself."

"So how is my ship coming along?" Shran asked.

"Pretty well. We fell behind a bit 'cause of the damn new injectors, but one of them Vulcan engineers finally whipped up a way to install them without having to redesign half of engineering. He could give Kov a run for his money."

"Well, then he'd have to be really good. Kov's doing a great job. On our last shakedown flight, he staged an emergency training. He tried your 2 minutes restart routine and found it 'most disagreeable' that he needed 2:05 to do it."

"Seriously," Trip said with a concerned stance. "Don't let him get anal about this stuff. When I did that stunt with T'Pol back then, she knew what to do instinctively. And Anna can't get the matrix up as quick as T'Pol, even on her best day. Human brains can't do such quick calculations, even if we try. The fact that they did it only 7 seconds slower shows that they're a damn fantastic crew. Send Kov my greetings and tell him that I was proud like hell of him that he managed to do it that quick, but he mustn't let his competitiveness get the better of him. That procedure is still dangerous as hell."

"I will tell him that. Anyways, we need to go, there's some holes to plug in our hull," Archer said as he and Shran made their way back to _Enterprise_.

Act 4 : Bayside Manor

T'Pol left the space dock towards their home, while Trip was staying behind for an hour or two. He would spend this time making the rounds of the ship, talking to engineers and sifting through reports. They had their own cabin on the ship - double sized with a double bed. After the turnover to Shran it would become the guest quarters. They had spent only one night there - last night - since they were both working overtime in engineering and were too tired for the ride home.

The Vulcan engineers and the regular crews were repeatedly glancing over to them in wide eyed amazement of how flawlessly and harmoniously they worked together. When their ways crossed a graceful, _ozh'esta_ was exchanged or a quick kiss when not too many people where in sight, but it did nothing to impede their work. A point that was decisively hammered home when they raced through the standard start-up routine in just a little over half the time, that it used to take the regular engineering crew, and those people beat Starfleet's recommended time by a considerable margin on any day.

"How the hell do they do that?" Lt. Greenfeld wondered, "They've just wiped out or time record by 4 minutes and still had time for 4 of them Vulcan kisses."

"Agreed," Solan droned. "Breaking one's workflow for untimely demonstrations of affection is not logical, but they nonetheless outperformed our best effort."

"They didn't break their workflow; they've just integrated those kisses in it. Bet ya anything, they wouldn't make it that quick if they were forbidden to do that," Greenfeld said and went back to his injector relays, shaking his head in disbelief.

Today, however, Trip was headed for their cabin before going home for a different reason. He had seen the intimate greed in her eyes and a strong impish vibe had washed over through the bond. That Vulcan wife of his was up to something and if the horny look was anything to go by, she wasn't planning to challenge him to a game of chess.

Considering that she had been involuntarily celibate due to friction damage for 3 days, he was less than surprised. Planning for the worst case scenario - that she was pacing the kitchen naked again - he decided it would be prudent to take a shower before going home.

When he came home, he found no naked wife was pacing around, in fact, no wife at all was to be seen and the door was locked. Punching in the code, slightly confused, he called out for her, but got no answer. Considering that 20 minutes ago, she had called him on the ship to tell him that she was waiting with dinner, he was slightly confused. A jolt of excitement and longing hit him through the bond. His eyes fell on a PADD with a text message

_I await thee, _Ashayam_, at the beach. The meal is served. There is no attire required._

"Get ya ass to the beach. I'm waitin' with dinner. And get the hell naked," he translated her message to drawl, while following her orders by 'disrobing' laughingly and set out to the beach. When he came out of the forest, he stopped dead in his tracks. "Holy shit!" he whispered at seeing the meal, it was an eclectic mix of both Vulcan and human snacks all neatly laid out ... all over his naked wife's body. That gave a whole new meaning to 'yummy'...

Part 5 : Starfleet Headquarters

Captain Jonathan Archer of _Enterprise_, Captain Erika Hernandez of _Columbia_, Captain Charles Tucker III, currently of _Challenger;_ Commander Shran, _Challenger__'_s future captain; and Admiral Gardner formed a high_-_profile meeting in one of Starfleet's briefing rooms.

"So, Captain, have you completed the plans for the test runs?" Admiral Gardner asked.

"Yes Admiral," Trip started. "I'm planning two extensive test runs. We'll be working with both the Vulcans and the Andorians. The Imperial Guard has dispatched two light battle cruisers as an escort. While Jon and Erika play taxi and get them dignitaries home, we'll do the first run. It'll be in and out of warp and we'll try to give her the beans for 24 hours at 5.5 towards Andorian space."

"I've read your mission proposal and I think it is good for the run," Gardner nodded. "I would like to add some navigational training though. I read you planned that for the second run, but I think it would be better to stage that during the first test and add simulated battle training for the second run."

"Sounds good to me, Admiral, I'll change the proposal and get it back to you. Anyways, for the second run, we'll go together with Jon and Erika, after sorting out any glitches from the first test. We'll make a beeline for Vulcan at whatever Kelby and Kov can give us. Once we get there, we'll stage the battle training you just proposed. I'm sure the lil' one can give daddy two or three Vulcan cruisers to play with as well."

Erika and Gardner looked at him dumbfounded.

"Damn, I really need to stop making that slip up's," he sighed. "Well anyways, it's not public knowledge, but T'Pau has lost both her parents as an infant and Vulcan's have a way to protect themselves in that case. They can be adopted by a mind-meld. T'Pau and us had such a thing without really knowing. So now we're her _en'ahr'at_, sorta like stepparents, if ya will."

"I hope she doesn't start to say 'damn' on every occasion," Erika giggled.

"No, but she can joke with the best of them," Archer explained with a laugh.

Gardner shook his head. "Captain, you propose marriage to a Vulcan right before the High Council, the next thing I learn is you've adopted their leader as your child. Do you have more in store for us?" Gardner sighed good mannerly.

"Well, I could try to become their high priest."

Act 6 : Bayside Manor

Trip paced the kitchen nervously.

"_Ashayam_, your walking back and forth will not expedite her arrival," T'Pol mock scolded softly.

"Well, neither did your running back and forth here 'expedite' my returning home. Yet you did it and you were stark naked at the time, darlin'," he teased back.

The door chime yanked them out of their banter and T'Pol opened the door. Wordlessly a petite Vulcan figure darted inside and launched herself at Trip, embracing him in a passionate hug, which was gently returned. They stood for a while, silently, while T'Pol collected their guest's luggage that was still standing outside.

Breaking, the silence, Trip whispered softly. "I was missing ya too, hon." He stroked her hair gently and continued. "Don't ya think we should finish the greetings?"

"You are correct father," she said, returning to her serene Vulcan face. "My behavior was incorrect. It is agreeable to see you mother."

"It is agreeable to see you as well. Your behavior is understandable. You experienced the same distress about your long separation as Trip did. Do not concern yourself."

"I wish to visit the beach. Will you accompany me father?" T'Pau asked.

"Go ahead, hon. I'll come down in a few moments. Gotta discuss something with T'Pol."

"As you wish," she said and wandered off.

"Your prediction of her course of action appears to be most accurate."

"She's not that difficult to predict."

"I believe there is an expectant child waiting for her father at the beach. I will prepare the meal," she said softly.

"Get me one of your gray two-pieces, darlin'. I want her to keep at least a bit of modesty."

After taking the outfit from T'Pol, he took off his shirt and left towards the beach after kissing his wife. True to his expectations, T'Pau had already completed the layout of her favorite cuddle spot by laying out the big blanket at the beach, with a shed Vulcan robe and two towels on it. A scraggly haired Vulcan head, peeking out of the water, changed direction towards the beach as soon as Trip came into view.

She handed him a towel and turned around with the unspoken request to have her back toweled off. He did so, while she dried the front.

"Best we keep a minimum of modesty. There's enough skin left," he smiled as he handed her the pants and the top of T'Pol's training outfit.

"I shall comply to your wish, father," she answered with nod as she stepped into the soft fabric.

A short while later she lied down beside him, slinging her arm around his muscled midriff, while her head rested firmly on his chest and both drifted into the reassuring calm of their favorite and so badly missed form of meditation.

When T'Pol approached an hour later, T'Pau gently got up.

"Did he rest unwell last night? He fell asleep most rapidly."

"He has been most emotional during the last days, in anticipation of your visit. He does not sleep well if he is in such state. As soon as he became content with your presence and your touch, he fell asleep."

"I wish to gain your deep understanding of him. How did you learn to comprehend his language? I often fail to do so."

"I learned to decipher it by comparable deduction. Recently your father referred to the inevitability of conflict with the _Rihanssu_ by an Earth expression saying 'the shit will hit the fan'. At first this appeared illogical and in no way connected to the described situation _as_ there was no such device in the vicinity. After some time I realized, that the event of airborne excrement colliding with a rotating device is a most uninvited and disagreeable event that is both imminent and unavoidable, exactly like his perception of conflict with the _Rihannsu_. He assessed the situation by referring to a comparable situation."

Trip had to use all his strength to stop himself from laughing or giving away any indication of having been woken up by his wife's stilted explanation of one of Earth's riper metaphors.

"Will you accompany me for a bath?" T'Pau asked. "I wish to continue our discussion and I do not wish to disturb father's rest."

"Agreed," T'Pol answered and the two women shed their attire before walking towards the water.

Trip opened his eyes slightly and smiled at the sight of two cute naked Vulcan bums wiggling away towards the sea, before he drifted back to sleep.

X X X

A trickle of cold water on his chest ripped Trip out of his sleep. His eyes flew open and he caught a glance of T'Pau, who emptied the contents of her cupped palm over him. His wife stood by and both females wore an expressed variant of their respective giggle brows. Obviously they had had quite some time to discuss, since T'Pol joined T'Pau in positioning herself right in front of him and turning around in the unspoken demand of a good back 'n bum rub. Always the committed husband and father, he dutifully delivered and T'Pol got a nice cheek grope on top of it as well. Afterwards, the two ladies covered themselves again and the family finally set out to enjoy the meal.

Act 7 : Colorado Mountains/NX-03 Challenger

"Father? I meant to ask. What is the purpose of taking this route to the top of the mountain? I saw in your charts, that a westerly route would have been exceedingly less demanding," she continued while climbing alongside a heavily breathing and sweat soaked Trip.

"Well, that's one of those illogical human things," he pressed as his muscle contours became even more pronounced, when he pulled himself up on the rope. "One of Earth's early explorers was asked why he climbed Mount Everest. There wasn't much to gain by that. And that guy answered 'because it was there'. "

"So the existence of the mountain made it necessary to get to the top of it? I do not understand."

"We humans... have a knack to prove our worth, even without necessity. It gives us a kick, a rush of positive emotions. That guy knew nobody had ever managed to climb that mountain, so he did it to be the first and to prove himself."

"So you chose that route because you wanted to prove that you can conquer the mountain's difficult route, instead of taking the easier option, to prove your own quality?"

"Exactly. Humans need that sort of reassurance. For instance. T'Pol's _pon farr _will soon arrive. We've got no problems in the mating department, mind you, and we have decided not to try for a child, not with the danger of war around the corner. So the logical thing would be to ask Phlox to just yank a hypospray into her and sedate her. But I chose to rough it out, to prove that I can do it, even if she's afraid to hurt me."

Trip still found it weird to be discussing such things with an adoptive daughter that had almost 40 years to go before her own mating drive would hit, but she was the most logical source of advice on the matter.

"You want to prove your quality as a mate. Is that why you have striven to acquire such most agreeable muscular appearance?"

"Wow!" Trip gasped a bit flattered "I knew T'Pol digs it, didn't know that you do too."

"Dig it?"

"T'Pol likes it. Yes, I did work out heavily to be able to make it through that mad week. T'Pol's very demanding. But I also did it for her. She likes to look at me and that's why I've kept up my regime."

"That is not the only reason. She does also... likes it, because it is an outward manifestation of strength. That gives her... and me as well a most agreeable assurance, that you can protect us, if the need arises."

"Well hon, ya look awfully petite, but you have a lot more strength than I do. This climbing business is hard for me, you're barely breaking a sweat. I don't think I'll be much use to protect you," he said with a badly hidden hint of sadness.

"I do not talk about combat, father. When we ... are in contact, it elicits a strong sense of protection and security in me. Your muscular and most heavyset physique amplifies that sensation."

"You really have a knack of getting me embarrassed, hon," he sighed.

"I regret that I caused you distress. Does my bathing in a disrobed condition cause such distress as well?" Obviously T'Pol had broached the subject during their swimming excursion.

"Nope, don' worry. That's a normal thing, well, maybe not for Vulcans, but for humans. It's no problem. You really grew to like that, didn't you?" he teased.

She only nodded silently. "We shall continue our ascend."

"Yep, it's gonna be dark soon," he said as they resumed their climb.

"I regret the absence of suitable bodies of water on Vulcan. The act of bathing and swimming provides a great deal of regeneration."

"Well, hon, I was meaning to build a swimming pool on T'Pol's estate anyways. Vulcan heat is pretty hard on me and I need it to cool down once in a while. Problem will be to get hold of any water on that darn hot planet o' yours."

"Synthesizing water is not a problem. We have most extensive underground hydrogen reservoirs and oxygen can be extracted from many forms of ore. If you would prepare sufficient plans, I could order Vulcan engineers to erect such structure coupled to a water synthesizer."

"I didn't know you like swimming **that **much, hon," he laughed and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Damn," he laughed. "You Vulcans sure like kissing, yet you think it is inappropriate. You have no idea what you're missing out on," he giggled, when T'Pau returned the gesture with a blush.

Shortly after that, they reached the top of the mountain, which featured a small grass covered plateau. Trip sat on the ground, with T'Pau sitting between his spread legs, enjoying the embrace from behind as they ate their evening meal that T'Pol had prepared. Cheek on cheek they enjoyed the glorious sunset, while Trip was telling her the story of how he and his wife were down on a planet with an intoxicating atmosphere on one of their first missions, how he had threatened to 'split her in half' and how glad he was never to have acted on that promise.

T'Pau spoke about her time in the Forge, how she experienced the Surak indoctrination at a young age as 'most taxing' and how agreeable it was for her to be allowed to act like the young girl that she was, when nobody was able to see her. She also explained how she shed all expectation and responsibility along with 20 years of age, once she was alone with her adopted parents. She now and then planted a shy kiss on his cheek to 'improve her technique'.

It was dark night when they were settling for sleep. Having foreseen her wishes, Trip had opted to bring a double sized sleeping bag instead of two single ones and as the night settled, he and his adopted daughter drifted into sleep below the stars, entangled in a loving embrace of a happy and proud father and a daughter recovering from months of overwhelming responsibilities in the arms that were protectively slung around her by her _En'ahr'at_.

X X X

Trip awoke to the sight of T'Pau's head on his chest. She was watching the glorious Earth sunrise, idly brushing through his chest hair. She was used to the gloomy double sun spectacles of Vulcan, but Earth's sunrise was a much more intense experience.

"Don't yank anything out there, T'Pol's gonna count 'em," he teased at seeing her fascination with his sparse chest fur.

A very elevated surprise brow manifested itself as she looked up to him.

"Just kidding, hon, g'mornin'," Trip laughed before giving her a peck on the cheek.

"Did you rest well father?"

"Yep, slept like a log. And if that giggle brow 'o yours is anything to go by, you had a nice sleep yourself."

"I did," she said and crawled out of the sleeping bag to prepare their breakfast.

X X X

Continuing their trek after the morning meal, the unlikely pair of father and daughter continued their conversations. For a head of planet, she surely was chatty, once she dropped out of leader facade into little girl mode. This change was good however, since in just 2 days time her leader half was to be called up again to represent Vulcan at the Coalition Conference. Walking down the easy western route, the two of them traded stories from space or the Forge respectively. Trip had also shown off some of his Vulcan language knowledge. She had giggle-brow'ed at hearing her native language mixed with a good lick of southern drawl, but also inwardly admired her father's dedication to learning the language. It was not only the learning of words. The Vulcan's stilted way of speaking was a result of their language's structure. So he had not only to learn the new words, he also needed to learn their way of stilt speaking in the process. That was a most impressing feat for someone who used to speak in a very colorful manner.

Once they reached the foot of the mountain, they continued their way along a broad pass with a cliff to the right and a steep gradient to the left. The appointed place, where one of _Columbia's_ shuttlepods would collect them at 1300 was still a good 10 kilometers away.

Trip was still grinning from one of T'Pau's patented jokes, when a grumbling sound yanked them out of their banter.

Looking up and then back to a puzzled T'Pau, he realized, what happened.

"NE'! TEHNAT MENAL!" (_down! against the wall!) _he shouted in Vulcan.

T'Pau crouched down against the cliff and Trip squatted down in front of her and wrapped himself protectively around her when rocks started bombarding his back.

X X X

T'Pol was overseeing the work aboard _Challenger _as the ranking officer during her husband's absence. With years of experience of using it, she overlooked the installation of the science station. With just a month to go until the first test flights, the construction was nearing completion, but a lot of loose ends were still to be tied.

Suddenly a brutal onslaught of panic, searing pain, protectiveness and fear slammed square in her mind through the bond, causing her to crouch down and yank the shields up. Regaining her composure as all personnel looked at her, she carefully lowered the shields again, ready to yank them back up at any time, but she noticed how the bond had gone silent, only his faint presence was there.

"Ensign McCormack, emergency channel to _Enterprise_ and _Columbia_!"

"Channels open, Commander."

"_Enterprise_, this is Commander T'Pol. This is an emergency. Scan for a Vulcan and a Human biosign in close proximity. The target area is 30 kilometers around Telluride, Colorado. Transport them aboard. Immediately! Prepare for a possible medical emergency. _Columbia,_ scan for transporter or weapon activity in the same area. Scan orbit and surrounding space for any irregularities or ship movements. _Enterprise_, send a shuttlepod to _Challenger_."

"Understood _Challenger_," came the simultaneous reply of Archer and Hernandez.

"Lt. Goto, you have the bridge," T'Pol said and sped off towards the airlock.

"Aye, Ma'am," the Japanese tactical officer replied.

X X X

Lt. Commander Kov pushed up the transporter controls and a Vulcan-Human pile materialized on the transporter platform of _Enterprise_. They were closely entangled and collapsed to the floor when they had finished materializing. Trip was literally wrapped around the petite Vulcan figure and his back was bleeding badly. His shirt was torn and his back was covered in open flesh wounds. A faint Vulcan groan announced that one of them was conscious.

"_Doctor,"_ she croaked in Vulcan.

Half an hour later, T'Pau was sitting beside a biobed in sickbay. Her father was lying on his stomach as Phlox suturated some of the more severe wounds. T'Pau had only an abrasion on her right cheek and a small wound on her right temple. Trip's sturdy frame had kept her out of danger almost completely.

"He has suffered a mild concussion, severe flesh wounds, a fracture of the right shoulder blade and a partially fractured tail bone. He shall be OK in a couple of days. He is not in a critical condition, thanks to Commander T'Pol's quick reaction," Phlox assessed the situation.

"Archer to Shuttlepod One. T'Pol, they're both alive and out of danger."

"Thank you Captain. Is it possible to meet with Captain Hernandez in two hours? I believe this was no ordinary accident."

"I'll inform her," Archer confirmed, not asking about her sudden suspicion.

"Minister, I understand your worry, but I must ask you to let go of the Captains arm. I cannot get a coherent scanner reading, while you are holding him."

Nodding, T'Pau finally broke contact with his lifeless body.

"I'm having a strong sense of déjà vu," Phlox sighed with a glance to a smiling Archer. Both remembered earlier instances of the troublesome work of trying to separate this particular pair of creatures.

As Phlox finally got his scanner readings, he gave the final diagnosis. "Captain Tucker is physically very fit. His recovery will be fast and if he hasn't changed his usual behavior, he will be demanding to be released from sickbay by the evening."

T'Pol had come in moments earlier and went straight for his biobed as Phlox covered Trips back with a big bandage, fixing it to his skin with tape.

"Your assessment has merit Doctor. I will make sure that he recovers properly and reports to you, before he is allowed to return to duty. Our daughter and I will tend to him, meanwhile. Are you well?" she asked T'Pau.

"I am. Father protected me. He risked his own life for mine," she answered in a weak voice.

"T'Pol, maybe you can help us with the scans? Shran is not much of a science officer," Archer interrupted.

"I shall assist," she said while leaving with Archer glancing back at Trip and T'Pau.

X X X

"Sorry, hon", Trip whispered in a weak voice. Almost two hours after the rock fall he had regained consciousness.

"For what?", she asked, happy to hear his voice again.

"Guess there'll be no beach meditation for a while," he explained with a weak smile.

"That is no concern of mine. You are alive, **that **is important to me.", she whispered and softly kissed him on the temple.

Act 8 : Enterprise Briefing Room

"Ah, Erika, come in."

"Captain, Commanders," Erika greeted, shaking hand with Archer and Shran. A nod to T'Pol finished the introduction as they all sat down to discuss the events.

"T'Pol. How could you know about all that? We did not receive any distress signals from the surface," Archer opened.

"I was almost rendered unconscious by an exceedingly strong transmission through our mating bond. Sensing the emotions were both of painful and protective nature led me to the conclusion that there was a danger and it extended to both of them."

"Well obviously, your logic was flawless as ever," Archer said in admiration. He was interrupted, when the door hissed open.

All eyes went wide and an eyebrow shot up, when two uninvited guests appeared. Trip was still naked from the waist up, his head bandaged and he had his uninjured arm slung around T'Pau's neck for support. Slowly hobbling to a chair, T'Pau gently turned it by 90 degrees, so he could use the backrest to lean his good shoulder on. She sat beside him on a second chair. Erika marveled inwardly at his amazing physique. Noticing Archer's shocked expression, T'Pau provided the explanation.

"I do apologize, Captain Archer. Father insisted..."

"It's ok, hon," Trip took over "Well, I was sorta there, when whatever it is happened, so I guess it makes sense that I get to hear what the hell went on."

"Why am I not surprised?" Archer smiled at his friends trademark stubbornness.

"Well, I'm sure the female crew enjoyed your insistence," Erika smiled good-naturedly, but a familiar sharp inhale cut through the room.

Trip went stiff, groaning from the pain that followed his sudden movement. Archer quickly jumped to shield Erika, but T'Pol had already regained her composure, while Erika looked in shock.

"I know, ya were only joking Captain, but please don't yank ma wife's reflexes by any untimely compliments," Trip said softly, to make sure she noticed that he wasn't angry. His face was still a pained grimace.

"I'm sorry Commander T'Pol, I didn't know," Erika apologized.

"I am not offended. Your approval of my husband's appearance is reassuring. Unfortunately Vulcan nature does not react well to human compliments. Feel free however to indulge in any dreams, they will not trigger my reflexes," T'Pol Vulcan-joked to ease the tension, while Erika blushed a lovely shade of purple.

The room broke out in laughter, which Trip paid the price for with another pained wince.

"Back to topic," Archer started. "T'Pol seems to have a point. We've sent a team down there. The rock fall seems to be induced artificially. We've found traces of particle weapon fire. Somebody wanted to get rid of either Trip or T'Pau and wanted it to look like an accident. Fortunately they made some mistakes, mainly underestimating T'Pol's logic and Trip's protectiveness."

"What are you talking about?" Trip asked.

"Someone made a lot of effort to collect a lot of rocks and positioned them at the top the cliff. They were actually transported there. We found traces of transporter activity. They were faint, but thanks to T'Pol's quick instructions, we found them just before they dissipated. How did you know all that, T'Pol?"

"I did not know it, I deduced. My husband's record on outdoor activities and away missions is less than exemplary. If we look back at his time aboard _Enterprise_, he proved an unfortunate habit of getting abducted, injured or ...impregnated... on away missions. On my insistence, he had chosen this particular region for his tour because it was the most unlikely mountainous region to expose him to dangers like rock falls or avalanches. He was also using most sophisticated safety equipment for the climbing. So when something happened to cause such a violent emotional condition, despite our cautious planning, the logical conclusion was that there was an outside influence. Scanning for such influences was the logical course of action."

"Did you find out who transported the pebbles?" Trip asked

"No," Shran continued "the signals were too weak and your wife tried to calculate where it came from, but it only led to a dead end near Mars. The calculated target was empty space."

"The space might not have been as empty as you thought," Erika jumped in "We found residues of a warp trail leading away from Mars. There has been no record of ship activity in that region for days. We were not able to match it to any known class of ship. The closest match we found was the signature a Vulcan Suurok-class battle cruiser."

"Why didn't Mars' sensors pick it up? And what's a Vulcan warship doing here?" Trip asked, looking at T'Pau.

"I do not know Father. Before I left Vulcan, all but four battle cruisers of the Suurok class were conducting patrol missions with the Andorians. The Ni'Var and the Sh'Raan are in orbit around Vulcan. The Ti'Mur is in Earth orbit. The newest ship, the T'Karah, is Admiral V'Kars ship and currently investigating reports of suspected ship movements near Corridan space. And as Captain Hernandez explained, it was only similar to a Suurok class signature, not matching exactly."

"We do not have a power signature to analyze, but it would be a logical possibility to consider, that this might have been a cloaked Romulan drone ship. Since it was obviously a planned act of aggression, I would recommend, that my husband and I as well as T'Pau stay aboard _Challenger_. We might be vulnerable to another attack, if we return to our home on earth."

"Makes sense T'Pol," Archer nodded "We'll send all data down to Starfleet security. They will investigate the case. I'll alert Gardner to increase the security measures around Earth, we do not need another attempt on Minister T'Pau's or Trip's life."

Act 9 : NX-03 _Challenger_

"_Welcome aboard __Challenger,__ Commander"_

"You speak Russian?" Commander Nadeshda Bresinskaya asked wide eyed, as Trip welcomed her at the airlock.

"Only a bit, my Great-Grandfather was from Russia. Providenya Bay. We used to visit that place sometimes when I was a kid. They call me stubborn, but that guy was even too stubborn to die, he was 114 when he took the last check ride west," Trip laughed as he made his way towards the briefing room with the ships new chief engineer. All other participants were already waiting.

One month had passed since the end of the coalition conference. After the attack on Trip and T'Pau, security measures were intensified. Starfleet's investigation had yielded the results that T'Pol had deduced as well. A cloaked ship had transported a large amount of loose rocks onto the cliff and a phaser blast from a hand weapon had set off the rock fall at exactly the time when Trip and his daughter had passed underneath. This was no coincidence, especially since the weapon signature was Vulcan.

Trip had been very worried to let go of T'Pau to return to Vulcan since the attack indicated an assassination attempt from within Vulcan society. She had promised him not to go nowhere without a personal guard, but that had not helped much to calm him down. 10 days after the attack he returned to duty, both on the ship and bond-wise. The 10 days of forced celibacy had done no good to T'Pols condition and an emergency Vulcan date had to be conducted.

_Challenger_ was ready for the first test drive and last preparations were made.

"Let's get the niceties out of the way," Trip opened the briefing. "I'm Captain Charles Tucker III, temporary captain of the boat. To my left is Commander T'Pol, the first officer. This is Commander Nadeshda Bresinskaya, the chief engineer. The two blue guys are Commanders Keval and Tholos of the Andorian Imperial Guard. They'll escort us during the tests."

"Captain, Commander, we are glad our meeting takes place under more amicable conditions this time," Keval returned. Both he and Tholos had been part of Shran's landing party at P'Jem, so they knew the two commanding officers of _Challenger_.

"The past is irrelevant. We are allied now. Do not concern yourself," T'Pol answered.

"Ok, we'll leave space dock in two hours. We'll start with several short trials of going in and out of warp. Afterwards we'll give her the beans at Warp 5.5 for 24 hours. You'll fall behind, but since you aren't exactly slow coaches, you should catch up with us in a couple hours after the test," Trip instructed the Andorian Commanders. "Once we've met up, we'll meet for a short briefing on the maneuvers we're going to practice. After that we'll do a continuous run back to earth at 5.1. Can you match that?"

"Our maximum speed is warp 5.2. 5.1 continuously is possible," Tholos answered.

"Any questions? ... Well, then, let's break 'er in."

X X X

The warp trials had begun very smoothly. Effortlessly, _Challenger_ dropped in and out of warp and several sprints from impulse to 5.2 went with only minor problems. A few conduits had packed in and the Warp coil had to be recalibrated after Trip found a slight discrepancy on one of his frequent visits to engineering. T'Pol had insisted on his staying on the bridge, but had given up on the topic, knowing that keeping her favorite engineer away from his engines was a fruitless endeavor.

The ship was a good 14 hours into its endurance test and the Andorians had already fallen behind by about 2 and a half hours. The ship was slightly vibrating from being pushed to its limit. Trip was sitting at the engineering station, monitoring the readings. He returned to the captain's chair, studying a PADD with the latest reports from engineering when suddenly the ship started to vibrate hard and everything that wasn't nailed or bolted down, rattled from its position.

"Bridge to engineering, report!"

"The injectors are overloading, Sir."

"Nastya, shut down the engine immediately, I'll be down in a minute! Ensign McCormack, send a distress signal to the Andorians."

Turning towards T'Pol he ordered "Darlin' you have the bridge."

"Captain," she retorted sternly at his inappropriate address.

"Sorry, ... Commander." Turning to his bridge crew, he added, "Nobody heard that," and sped towards the lift

"Aye, Sir," came the slightly amused reply from the crew as he disappeared from the bridge.

"Commander T'Pol, a Vulcan ship is approaching. Suurok-class," a young Ensign reported.

T'Pol turned to him. "When will they arrive?"

"Less than two hours. Are they coming to help us?"

"That is likely. They will have received the signal we sent to the Andorian ships. I do not understand however why we did not detect it before."

An hour later a searing pain came through the bond and T'Pol yanked up her shields.

"T'Pol to engineering!"

"Bresinskaya, here. We had a plasma leak, the Captain's been injured. It's nothing dramatic. He'll return to the bridge after leaving sickbay."

"What is the damage status?"

"The injectors are damaged, most conduits have blown. I have no idea how that happened. No chance to repair that out here. Impulse is all I can give you commander."

"Continue to conduct any possible repair. Report back in 30 minutes."

"Aye, Commander."

A much disheveled Captain returned to the bridge about 20 minutes later. His head was bandaged; several plasma burns were covering his left side of the face. Smoldering marks covered his uniform.

"The engines are toast. And I'll be damned if this was a coincidence. What's the status up here?" he growled.

"A Vulcan ship is approaching. They have not hailed us yet. They dropped out of warp and will intercept us shortly. They have most likely picked up our distress call."

"On screen. Magnify!"

Trip looked at the approaching ship intensely. Suddenly he started to narrow his eyes and a wave of anger and shock raced through the bond.

"Captain," T'Pol asked

"Tactical alert! Polarize hull plating! Raise the shields! Prepare weapons! All hands to Battle stations!"

Everyone raced to his place and T'Pol shot him a questioning look.

"This isn't a social call and that's no ordinary Suurok-class I've ...," he was interrupted by jolt going through the ship.

"Direct hit to hull polarizer, shields are holding," Lt. Goto reported as the second hit rocked _Challenger_. "Shields down to 40%"

"Target their long range transmitters. Fire!"

"Their transmitters are down. They've lost long range communication. Our shields are down, hull plating at 90%"

"Ensign, get us upside down and beneath them. Lt. target these coordinates." Trip hammered a set of coordinates into the tactical console. "Fire as soon as we're in position."

A Torpedo from _Challenger_, which was diving below the Vulcan ship, hit it squarely at the desired coordinates causing several cascading explosions.

"They've lost shields and warp drive," the puzzled armory officer reported.

"Ensign, get the right side up again and resume normal battle stance. Lt. Goto target their weapon systems."

"Aye Sir. Hull plating offline!", Goto pressed as several hits rocked the ship

"The Andorians are hailing us," T'Pol reported. Trip nodded to her and T'Pol opened the channel.

"Keval, Tholos, take out their impulse engines and maneuvering thrusters!"

"Lt, have you got a lock on their weapons."

"Yes, Sir"

"Bomb 'em!"

Several Torpedoes hit the Vulcan cruiser. They had managed to hit _Challenger's_ impulse engines and they were down to a quarter impulse, but after several more hits and a blast from the phase cannon the weapons of the attacker where useless. The Andorians had taken their propulsion offline and just for good measure they had blasted huge chunks out of the battle cruisers warp ring, causing plasma to vent from the wounded aggressor, who was now sitting duck.

"Keval, lock your tractor beam on us, drag us outta here. Nastya, take the engines offline. Tholos keep a lock on 'em, if they make any move, finish them off!"

"Understood captain."

As Keval's ship dragged the engine-less _Challenger_ away from the Vulcan ship, closely guarded by Tholos' ship, _Challenger_ was hailed by the Vulcans. As soon as the channel opened, V'Lon's blood stained face appeared.

"I could've sworn ya friggin' bastards had something to do with it!"

"I have underestimated you, human. Our brothers ...will not make the same mistake," V'Lon taunted coughing, while Trip looked on with narrowed eyes. "It is just a matter of weeks before we are reunited." V'Lon cut the transmission.

"What was that all about?" Trip asked.

"Captain, their long range transmitters come back online."

"Tholos!, give 'em the rest, target their war core! Total destruction!" Trip shouted.

Sevral hits from the Andorian vessel resulted in a huge explosion as the defenseless Vulcan warship disintegrated into a field of space dust.

A massive wave of shock and fear transmitted through the bond, from T'Pol to him. Knowing that this was most likely a reaction to his uncharacteristic brutality, he turned to her and addressed her in Vulcan, much to the bridge crews amazement.

"_You will understand, later, _Ashayam_"_

"Ensign, get me Admiral Gardner and the Vulcan High Council on emergency channels, transfer it to my ready room. T'Pol come with me."

"Aye, Captain"

X X X

"Father, you are injured!"

"Tell me something I don' know yet, hon. We were attacked ... by a Vulcan battle cruiser."

"The _T'Karah_," she said with a visible hint of sadness.

"She informed Starfleet yesterday that they had lost contact with V'Kars ship," Gardner filled in.

"We believed that the ship had been destroyed," T'Pau added.

"Well it is now, hon. I had the bastard blasted right ta fuckin' hell," he spat.

"You destroyed it?"

"Yes. We had toasted their engines, their weapons were offline and their shielding was gone and the first thing they repaired was the long range transmitters. That's a dead giveaway that they wanted to call home urgently and I doubt that they had Vulcan in mind."

"You think the Romulans are involved?" Gardner asked.

"I'm pretty sure even. V'Lon slipped something in that direction."

"V'Lon was aboard the ship?" T'Pau asked with a shock brow.

"Yep, hon. And the whole stuff makes a lot of sense now. His perpetual attempts to divide Humans and Vulcans or his attack on me 'n T'Pol, and that warp trail after we two were attacked, makes a whole lotta sense now, too. Thankfully he isn't very fond of logic, because he gave away his plans again. Thank god the Romulans picked a blithering idiot as a conspirator."

"I still do not understand how you knew they would be attacking us," T'Pol interrupted.

"What do you mean, Commander?" Gardner asked

"When my husband saw the ship approaching, he called for battle stations, seemingly without any reason." T'Pol explained

"Well, I've got eyes in my head. The lil' one has shown me the plans to the Suurok-class when she tried to convince me to take the warp 7 designs from her. That thing didn't have its inlet manifolds where they're supposed to be and the Suurok-class sure as hell hasn't got a Romulan cloaking device under its belly. I've seen those spikes before, when we jettisoned from that drone ship."

"Well, guess they didn't count on there being an engineering nut on the bridge," Gardner chuckled.

"When they attacked us, they went straight for our hull plating. That means they didn't know we got the shielding technology from the Vulcans."

"I did not make that public knowledge. As has been proven, I rightly doubted V'Kar's loyalty," T'Pau explained.

"That's why I think they were so eager to give their buddies a ring. For that reason I made sure that long range transmitters was the first thing we took out. I think they're gonna make the move on Vulcan. V'Lon made a hint at that and he spoke about it only taking weeks. It'll help if they think we don't have shielding. We should get _Enterprise_ and _Columbia_ upgraded and collect our forces around Vulcan."

"I shall recall all our forces. You have done a great service for Vulcan, father."

"I'll recall Archer and Hernandez. How long will it take you back to Earth?" Gardner asked.

"Few days, our engines are fried and the Andorians have to tow us."

"I'll send an engineering freighter on intercept course, Gardner out."

"So, with the Admiral gone, let's have a word with you, young lady," Trip addressed T'Pau sternly "Spill the beans about that stuff with Romulans and Vulcans being brothers. And why do they look a helluva lot like you guys. I have dang good eyes. It was only half a second, but some guy ran through the picture and he had some ridges on his forehead, but the rest looked Vulcan. And don't gimme any shit. Pants down, hon, or I'll ask Starfleet about it. And that's not even counting the spanking ya'll get from daddy if ya bullshit me!"

"Your father expects you to truthfully explain why V'Lon had referred to a _Rihanssu_ that your father saw for a fraction of a second as a brother. He also decisively warns to not indulge in any deception, because in case of that he considers himself forced to report his findings to Starfleet. He also threatens to perform a human punishing ritual, if you do not reveal the full truth," T'Pol translated after getting a puzzled and shock stricken brow from T'Pau about her father's immense agitation and the accompanying undecipherable drawl.

"I did not mean to deceive you father. Those that you call Romulans are known as the _Rihanssu_. They are those who walk beneath the raptor's wings."

"I heard that before, when Jon told me about this Syrran fella. Could you get a tad more specific, hon?" Trip said softening up, but still stern enough.

"They left our world at the time of Awakening. They did not accept Surak's teachings."

"So they're actually savage ex-Vulcans that left some 2000 years ago?"

"Yes."

"No wonder you didn't want us to know that. I'll not tell Starfleet what I know, don't get your knickers in a twist, hon. And watch your back. Those guys gonna come round for a visit soon."

"Thank you. I will make sure that my... undergarments do not become disheveled," she teased shyly.

"Ok, hon, gotta work here. love ya," he said and threw her a kiss.

"As do I, father," she whispered after the transmission had been closed.

Part 10 : NX-03 _Challenger_ in Vulcan orbit

After the Andorians had towed _Challenger_ back to Earth, it took two full weeks to undo the damage to the engines. Trip had headed an inquiry team that took a look into the reasons of the engine damage. The overloading injectors had caused a cascade of failures, which crippled the ship. After a long research, they had found that one of the 10 Vulcan engineers, Korel, had a loyalty problem. He was found to be a V'Lon supporter after a very upset Professor Solan had mind melded with him. The brilliant Solan, his ingenious solution to the injector assemblies having been exploited to cause the cascading failures, wore himself out by working restlessly to undo the damage that his corrupted colleague had done.

As soon as the ship was repaired they had raced towards Vulcan. Trip had kept Nastya busy by pushing the engines to the limit. First skirmishes had been reported near Vulcan and more Romulan forces had been detected in approach on Vulcan. When they reached Vulcan orbit, they joined the scene of an all out space brawl. 6 Suurok class battlecruisers, _Enterprise_, _Columbia_ and 8 Andorian Kumari-class cruisers faced off against 20 Romulan warbirds.

They arrived not a minute too soon, as they saw two warbirds tearing into _Enterprise_.

"Dive below Ensign, Lt. Goto target their cloaking device, go for the spikes under their belly, get back round afterwards!" Trip shouted.

_Challenger_ turned upside down while diving underneath the warbird, delivered a blow to the cloaking device that triggered the same cascading explosion that they saw with the _T'Karah_ and reappeared turning up on the other side. "I owe you pink skin!" Shran praised through the com. "Finish 'em off, Shran!" Trip retorted.

"Same with the next one!" Trip ordered, while _Enterprise_ killed off the recently crippled warbird. The news about this maneuver was quickly relayed from ship to ship across the whole Coalition fleet. Especially the nimble Andorian Kumari class fighters were ideally suited to exploit this weakness of the Romulans. The attackers quickly noticed who had brought the unfavorable news and 3 warbirds tore into _Challenger_.

A massive round of hits rocked them and Trip was sent flying, crashing into the helm console. Ensign McCormack had sunk to the ground with a scream of pain, severely injured, and Trip tried to regain his composure. A big cut above his eye released a small stream of blood over his face. Two MACO's collected the lifeless body of McCormack and carried him away towards sickbay. T'Pol took the helm control

"Roll it darlin', Goto spank 'em! Y'got only one attempt!" Trip shouted

T'Pol rolled _Challenger_ upside down and swooped them below two of the attacking warbirds in an amazing curved upside-down maneuver. Goto delivered two torpedo volleys that crippled the attackers with an accuracy that would give Malcolm a wet dream. The third warbird was kept busy by Shran. To turn the ship upside down again, T'Pol yanked _Challenger_ into a half looping and they ended up right behind the two crippled warbirds.

"Goto, target their warp core, Fire!"

"Go to hell!" Goto croaked as he delivered two rounds of torpedo fire, accompanied by the phaser cannons and over a hundred Romulans met their creator when two warbirds exploded into massive fireballs.

"I'll buy your helmsman an ale!" Shran shouted through the com link, as Enterprise delivered the final blow to the third attacker.

"My wife doesn't do booze," Trip laughed back, shooting T'Pol an admiring glance.

A few hours, the loss of two Suurok- and 3 Kumari-class cruisers later, the Romulans were down to 8 ships. Captain Archer had been severely injured early in the fight, but Shran had made good use of his years of experience in the Imperial Guard. Both _Enterprise_ and _Columbia_ had taken a heavy beating and both Kov and Kelby had their hands very full to keep their systems running. _Challenger_ was far from pristine condition herself, but the new shields had protected them long enough to keep them in the race. Engineering was busy after several hits to the impulse engines had left them at half impulse. Commander Bresinskaya made a fantastic job of keeping things together. Considering who was the captain, she had a high standard to live up to and the Russian lady dutifully delivered.

Now outnumbered hopelessly, the Romulans were dealt with in a matter of 2 hours. While the Suurok cruisers stopped any Romulan ships from escaping, herding them back to the battle scene, the nimble Kumari-class ships of the Andorians dove below the warbirds to cripple them with the neck bite blow to the cloaking device, a move that would become known as the "Tucker dive," while the three NX-class Human ships and 4 smaller D'Kyr-type vessels, which had joined the battle after having been recalled from Patrols, shredded them to space dust.

"Phase cannon! Target the warpcore!" Trip shouted. Blood still ran down his face. Stubborn as ever, he refused to leave the bridge after face-planting into the helm console. A blinding explosion on the screen meant the destruction of the 20th and last warbird.

A long silence followed. As the pressure fell off, Trip went over to the com console and opened a channel.

"This is Captain Charles Tucker III of the Starfleet vessel _Challenger_. To all fleet. YEEE-HAW, well done everybody!" he shouted before he went back under the whoops and cheers of all the bridge crew, except for his wife. She settled for a very elevated giggle brow."

"Ashayam_, I did not know, that you are such an agreeable pilot,"_ he drawled in Vulcan as he plopped back heavily in his captain's chair.

"_I have a great deal of talents, my beloved,"_ she shot back with a very pronounced giggle brow and a look that told him to save some energy for the night.

Act 10 : Starfleet Headquarters

"Well, Cap'n keep an eye on 'er," Trip said, patting Shran solidly on the shoulder as he handed over the command of _Challenger_.

"Thank you, I will," the blue-skinned man shot back.

After fending off the massive attack on Vulcan, with 44 casualties for the Humans, more than 300 for the Andorians, 212 Vulcans and more than 1500 Romulans the immediate danger had been averted. Earth and Vulcan had declared war on the Romulan Star Empire, shortly after followed by Tellar and Andoria. According to Vulcan intelligence – who, after all, were best suited to infiltrating their distant brothers – there was no imminent action to be expected. Not knowing that their Vulcan accomplice V'Lon had not only failed his mission of ridding them of Trip and the _Challenger_, but also given away their plans to attack Vulcan, the Romulans had committed all but 5 of their available warbirds to the invasion fleet.

The lost element of surprise coupled to a weakness of their design, found out by an eager engineer and exploited by brilliant helmsmen had forced their fleet into a humiliating defeat. For days, debris burned up in Vulcans atmosphere. The Romulans were in no condition to conduct any more surprise attacks in the immediate future. They barely had enough ships left to prevent an all out attack by the Coalition fleet. Vulcan operatives within the Romulan Star Empire had delivered reports that the Romulans calculated it would take 15 to 24 months to rebuild their fleet.

After the fight, all commanding officers of the Coalition fleet were summoned to the High Council, where they received decorations for their merits in the fight for Vulcan. When it was Trip's turn to be decorated, T'Pau decided to throw all protocol over board and she hugged her father with a kiss on his cheek, right in front of all members of the High Council, shooting every Vulcan eyebrow very far north.

While the Andorian ships headed home, the three Human ships left for Earth to lick their wounds. Jonathan Archer, who had been severely injured, survived and returned to duty 3 weeks later, barely in time to lose his next first officer as Shran took over the _Challenger_ from Trip. The first couple settled back to their home on Earth. T'Pol had requested a change of job from Gardner. Granting her wish, she changed from teaching at the academy to engineering research on Saturn Station, incidentally the same site a certain engineer was ordered to, as construction of the new Constitution class prototype started.


End file.
